


Baby Love

by blxe_txlip, pixielove



Series: The Future is Now [1]
Category: Larry Stylinson - Fandom, One Direction
Genre: A lovable dork, Because I love Larry as Dad's, Blowjobs, Cute Dad's, Domestic Larry, Especially love Larry as Dad's to a baby girl, Fairy boy Styles, Gemma labour, Harry and Lou, Harry goes solo because Louis is a tired bunny (lol), Harry is a domestic goddess, Harry's a lanky fairy and Lou is a sassy pixie boy, Larry Stylinson as Daddies fic, Larry adoption fic, Larry family series, Larry surrogacy, Lou is Tink., M/M, Sexual Tension, Such husband's, They are so cute, Uncle Liam, Uncle Nialler is captain of the S.S Larry Stylinson, Uncle Zayn, adoption fic, larry stylinson fluff, shameless fluff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-08-08
Updated: 2015-02-19
Packaged: 2018-02-12 07:54:30
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 35,254
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2101638
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blxe_txlip/pseuds/blxe_txlip, https://archiveofourown.org/users/pixielove/pseuds/pixielove
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p><i>For a moment, it was just Louis, Harry and Lawana. Everything else disappeared. The world and the painful past dissolved away, leaving this helpless little girl wedged between Harry and his husband, her little heart beating strongly against his. Despite it all, she’d survived. She was a fighter, he could feel it. When the world came back into focus, and Harry found the azure of his other half’s eyes, he really couldn’t help it when he beseeched Louis with his charming dimpled smile.</i><br/>It’s 2019 – Harry and Louis are happily married and are spending their anniversary in Thailand doing a charity gig with the boys when they meet a baby girl in a Thai orphanage who changes everything.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For a moment, it was just Louis, Harry and Lawana. Everything else disappeared. The world and the painful past dissolved away, leaving this helpless little girl wedged between Harry and his husband, her little heart beating strongly against his. Despite it all, she’d survived. She was a fighter, he could feel it. When the world came back into focus, and Harry found the azure of his other half’s eyes, he really couldn’t help it when he beseeched Louis with his charming dimpled smile.
> 
> It’s 2019 – Harry and Louis are happily married and are spending their anniversary in Thailand doing a charity gig with the boys when they meet a baby girl in a Thai orphanage who changes everything.

It was no place for a child. Harry could feel the weight of pain in his heart as he fell into their shoes, imagining life in their place with no family, no parents, a feeling of no hope possessing his soul like an anchor, bringing him down. It should not have been the atmosphere of a thousand children in one space. Practically newcomers to the world, there had to have been more to life for them than this. A glimpse of hope, and knowledge that there was a place for them, for each and every one of them. Zayn was trying to discreetly hide his tears and doing an awful job of it as the nurse introduced him to a blind boy of fourteen, lying in his bed, unseeing eyes focused upon the decaying ceiling above. Harry inched closer, feeling his lip start to shake as he settled his large paw upon Zayn’s shoulder, steadying his friend.

Liam, having just gifted a young eight year old girl with a giant panda bear, leant in to kiss her forehead before joining Harry and Zayn at the blind boy’s bedside. He turned to the young nurse enquiringly.

“Has…Has he been here since… since he was a baby, then?”

“Niran? Yes, since he was baby. Niran live here whole life.”

It was, frankly, devastating. Harry felt shattered, and like Zayn, who was wiping at his eyes with the cuff of his sleeve, he felt the tears begin to burn his eyes, spilling down his cheek for the boy who could neither see nor understand a word of their language. In the distance, Louis could be seen with a girl of about five years old on his lap, and though she couldn’t understand him, she was giggling happily as he bounced her up and down on his knee while Niall strummed a tune on his guitar for the girl clutching her new panda bear. Sniffing, Harry turned to look over his shoulder, catching a glimpse of Louis and the young girl and despite the crying heart he wore so openly on his sleeve, he couldn’t help but to smile ever so slightly at the sight. Louis was a natural with children, which was a given, having helped raise four younger sisters. Their eyes met briefly, light blue and green merging. Louis’ smile fell by degrees, replaced moments later by the softest and gentlest of smiles. Harry turned his attention back to the boy who lay on his bed stiffly and didn’t seem to be aware of anyone’s presence, the only hint that he was aware of anything in his surroundings being the constant clenching and unclenching of his hand. Instinctively, Harry reached in and grabbed the tense hand, hoping to offer a fraction of comfort to the boy. The hand relaxed within his own.

The nurse began speaking in their mother tongue, and as she spoke quietly to him, his ear tilted toward her. When he responded, there was, what seemed to be, long delay and apparent struggle, though it was difficult to truly decipher. After several moments of conversing, the nurse turned to the boys.

“I tell him you come from the great United Kingdom and you are big stars,” she said with the type of eye-crinkling smile that made Harry warm to her instantly. “I tell Niran that you sing. He ask, will you sing a song, please?”  
“Of course!” Harry said, feeling as Louis slid in beside him, sensing the warmth and reassurance of his husband’s hand reaching for his, fingers slipping between the spaces of Harry’s. “Lads, what will it be? An oldie for old time’s sake?” Harry’s honey-warm tone asked.

“Mate, all our songs are for swooning girls,” Liam smirked, teddy bear eyes glowing with mirth. “Horan, get over here-” he was saying, but Niall was already pulling up a chair beside Niran’s bed, ankle resting on his opposite knee and guitar propped against him, he started strumming a tune that brought Harry back to a time that felt like almost a lifetime ago and before he knew it, Liam was singing, and the boy’s detached face was lifting, slowly changing.

_“Let’s dance in style, let’s dance for a while… Heaven can wait… we’re only watching the skies… hoping for the best, but expecting the worst…”_ he sang, a smile curving his eyes into crescent moons as the boy’s ear tilted toward them, something behind his unreadable expression shifting by a fraction. What Harry realised, as he watched the boy intensely, watching as he released a deep breath caught in his throat, was that, for Niran, this could mean a lot. Music, instrument, song, harmony… so easily taken for granted, and yet, for a boy who could neither see nor understand them, it might have meant the world.

Harry cleared his throat, trying to rid the lump before he chimed in, _“Let us die young or let us live forever…we don’t have the power…but we never say never…sitting in a sandpit, life is a short trip…the music’s for the sad man…”_ Harry sang smoothly with tones of rich honey dew in a fresh breeze as Niall continued to strum away and their voices all slid effortlessly together as the chorus hit. By the time the song was over, and Niall’s final guitar strums pattered off to silence, the room was filled with seventy odd children looking on with curiosity and what seemed to be every care-giver on duty at the orphanage. When Harry turned his gaze back to Niran, he saw that tears were leaking freely from his eyes.

 

 

*****

 

 

Harry had taken to the young nurse and learnt that her name was Mali. It was during a tea break in the staffroom that One Direction found themselves seated at the table sipping tea and eating some Thai rice and noodles while other care-givers on duty did the lunch round for the Thai orphans downstairs.

“How long have you been a nurse?” Harry asked Mali over the loud staff room buzzing with noise, a collection of staff in the distance talking in Thai while the boy’s all tried to talk to one another at the same time. Harry vaguely caught fragmented parts of their conversations while he tried to focus on what Mali was saying.

“…no Louis, they’ll never believe that now you like girls who eat mushrooms,” came Niall’s twang followed by a hyena cackle.

“It’s not like they don’t know you’re married to the fairy princess over there-” was Liam’s mocking drawl.

“…so I was able to train…and move into city. All pay-check I bring to my family. My father…bad back…couldn’t work, so I support family.”

“And… And how long have you been working here?” Harry asked, absentmindedly playing with the fraying denim above the gaps at the knees of his black skinnies.

“Five year.”

“Five years? Wow…” Harry said, drifting off into silence as he picked his teacup up and sipped the remaining tea, the number five leaving an impression with him as he turned to look at the Louis who was tweeting fans and asking them to dig deep for donations to the orphanage. Today wasn’t any ordinary day for Harry, not in the slightest. It was his and Louis’ five year wedding anniversary, and of all the things in the world they could be doing, they were spending it doing a charity gig. Harry was happy, in his element. There would be plans for later. Harry found himself drifting off as he stared into space. When he reflected on their past, he couldn’t help thinking how surreal it was that after those years of oppression, the days when Modest! controlled their every move like puppeteers, that they were finally free. Free to write the kinds of songs they had always wanted to write. Free to be the kind of band they had always wanted to be and for Harry and Louis, free to be who they really were, sexual orientations and all. The day they’d come out to the world had been the most liberating moment of his life, but nothing could beat the day they’d finally made a promise to one another for the world to witness, binding it in a circle of gold infinity. Harry unconsciously reached for the necklace dipped beneath his black see-through shirt with a long V-neck, tattoos and nipples carelessly exposed. As a gesture of habit, he held onto the chain and pulled it out to toy with the attached engagement ring that he always wore close to his heart.

Once the boys were finished eating, Mali rose to her feet and led them away, asking if they’d like to visit the nursery where the babies were kept. All the boy’s loved babies, but Harry swanned in with his pointy boots ahead of Mali and the others as if he had an in-built baby monitor and knew where to find them. And it wasn’t like any of the babies were howling either.

“We have eight in our care,” Mali was telling Niall, explaining they’d just had their feeds and were all dozing off now. Harry was already in the nursery hovering over a cot and staring at a sleeping baby with the expression of a fond mother doe as Mali and the boys followed behind.

It was a circular room with large windows covered with heavy velvet draped, blanketing the babies in darkness. Mali turned a harsh light on as Niall, Liam and Zayn went to various cribs and Louis brushed up against Harry and peered into the crib. Harry couldn’t take his eyes off her. The baby was like a peacefully sleeping cherub, her delicate face just like a perfect little doll, he thought to himself.

“This is baby Lawana,” Mali introduced, approaching Harry and Louis at her crib, “She ten month now,” she was saying, when a baby in the room woke up and started screeching. Mali smiled apologetically at Harry and Louis before turning to pick up the wailing baby, holding the infant close to her chest and talking gently in their mother tongue.

“Lawana,” Harry said with his slow, deep drawl, a reflective look on his face as he took her in, turning his eyes from her only when he felt the fondness in Louis’ eyes drilling holes into his face.

“What?” he asked defensively, a slow smile dragging his huge dimples out. Louis just smiled and shook his head.

“Nothing. Just you, melting into a pile of goo over there.”

“Look at her. She’s beautiful.”

Louis’ long eyelashes fluttered before turning to observe the sleeping baby whose own eyes fluttered open as the baby Mali was clutching kept screeching. Like a domino effect, Lawana began crying hysterically, chubby little arms flaying, tears streaming down her face. Instinctively, Louis reached down and scooped the sobbing Lawana up, holding her close to his chest and cupping her head delicately. Harry inched closer to Louis, his smile, if possible, broadening, a ridiculously and almost sickening fond smile that observed Louis as if he’d put each individual star in the sky.

“There, there little lady, you’re okay…you’re okay…shush…I know…shush, don’t cry. I’ve got you,” Louis whispered gently, stroking her little tuffs of black silken hair. Lawana gulped back a final sob, almond brown eyes blinking rapidly and staring into Louis’ eyes, her hiccups pattering away to nothing.

“You’re right, as always, Harold.” Louis said after a long moment, his eyes fixed on baby Lawana’s.

“Hmm?”

“She is beautiful.”

“I know. Can I…?” he asked, gesturing to hold her. Louis nodded, a soft smile on his face as he gently placed Lawana in Harry’s arms and it was incredible. There were no words in the world to describe how unbelievable it was when her chubby arms wrapped around Harry’s neck, burying her button nose into the crook of his neck and holding on for dear life.

“Babe, I think you’ve made a new fan,” Louis commented loudly for a watchful Niall to hear. Niall was at their feet, cooing at the baby and reaching out for her little hand, squeezing it gently.

“She was looking at you in the same star-struck way, mate,” Niall sniggered, patting Louis on the back. “In fact, I think this one isn’t gonna let you two leave her sight any time soon…” he added, stating the obvious. Lawana was fisting the back of Harry’s shirt with one hand, her other hand now clutching his neck as he swayed her about and whispered gently in her ear. While she gripped Harry for dear life, her eyes were fixated on Louis, watching his every movement.

Once Mali had gotten the baby in her arms back to sleep, placing him back in his crib, she returned to Harry and Louis’ side.

“I see you have made friends,” she commented, smiling.

“That we have,” Harry answered, his giant paw reaching around and dwarfing Lawana’s small hand as he held onto it. “Hey Mali, I have a question…” Harry said, clearing his throat and turning to the young nurse.

“Yes, Harry?”

“Do you know about…her parents? I mean, what happened? Are they coming back for her? Is this, like, a temporary thing, or is it… I mean, were they taken from her? Or could her parents not cope with her?”

Mali hesitated before answering.

“Boys… I am not… I am not allowed to share it. Normally, I mean, this is my… I could lose my job, manager-” she was explaining, and Harry was already nodding in understanding, a look of regret ghosting his face as his hand went back to cupping Lawana’s head. His hand was so large and her head still so small, Harry’s hand practically covered the entire skull, the tendons beneath his skin straining, the rings on his fingers glinting beneath the harsh light.

Mali looked from Harry to Louis with a bittersweet smile before seeming to weigh something up in her mind, she took the three of them to a corner at the end of the room where the play toys were scattered.

“Okay, I will say,” she said, seemingly unable to bear the lost puppy look on Harry’s face. “Neighbour in the apartment complex report to authority. Lawana found…one month…crying in crib, mother dead on the floor from overdose.”

Harry felt like he’d been punched in the gut, and yet, he was aware that each and every baby in this room had experienced similar fates. Their stories weren’t pleasant, otherwise they wouldn’t be here. Holding her in his arms, and seeing the way she melted into Louis’ embrace, the way she couldn’t take her eyes off him and the way she was as unwilling to let go of Harry as Harry was unwilling to let go of her.

For a moment, it was just Louis, Harry and Lawana. Everything else disappeared. The world and the painful past dissolved away, leaving this helpless little girl wedged between Harry and his husband, her little heart beating strongly against his. Despite it all, she’d survived. She was a fighter, he could feel it. When the world came back into focus, and Harry found the azure of his other half’s eyes, he really couldn’t help it when he beseeched Louis with his charming dimpled smile.

“Lou… We can’t leave her…” was all he said, and in any other world, Harry would expect to hear Louis sigh and try and knock some common sense into him, but that wasn’t the response Louis gave him. Instead, Louis was chewing on his bottom lip as he stared back into Lawana’s eyes, his fixed gaze only wavering to look into Harry’s emerald eyes, shining like some ridiculous anime or Sailor Moon character. And, really, how could Louis say no to that, or to the precious little girl who seemed afraid to let Louis out of her sight?

“Mali… tell me,” Louis said, snapping out of his daze as he turned to the nurse. “How does the adoption process work here?”

 

 *****

 

Three months later, Harry and Louis could say that they were the legal fathers of Lawana Reign Tomlinson. The process hadn’t been as straight-forward as Harry would have hoped, but Louis had assured him that this was faster than usual – they had been able to speed the process up somewhat. Those three months had been long and painful enough for Harry as it was, in which he and Louis were allocated visits to the orphanage while their lawyers were working with the state to document and legalize the adoption. It always broke Harry’s heart in half, having to watch their baby dissolve into tears when it was time to leave. It was only when Mali would walk in and place a steadying hand on his shoulder, promising to watch over her in the meantime, that Harry was able to finally go, feeling as Louis squeezed his hand tightly and finding himself a little comforted to realise it wasn’t just him who felt this way. Louis tried to hide it for his sake, he knew, tried to appear strong, but Harry knew the truth behind the tightening jaw, the way he’d swallow loudly, golden skin turning a pale shade, forced to let go of Lawana.

Thankfully that was now in the past. Harry and Louis were sat in Lawana’s nursery – a cozy and charming little room with turquoise painted walls and a large crib with a white drape netting hanging above it. Lawana’s name was written in big white block letters above her crib, and near the large open windows, painted monarch butterflies took flight off winding branches. The nursery was filled with fairy-tale books on the shelf and teddy bears, mobiles hanging from above her crib. Harry and Louis watched fondly as she lay in the crib, chubby legs kicking and hands bashing the moon and stars mobile above her.

“C’mon pumpkin, come to Dadda,” Louis said, lifting Lawana, who was gurgling and babbling nonsense, out of her crib. Harry was curled to his side on the carpet of the floor with their black and white cat Monty purring contently on his chest.

Lawana squirmed toward Harry, eyes pinned on Monty. Laughing, Louis settled himself to the floor and spread his legs out, placing Lawana between his thighs, watching as Harry picked Monty up and held him up to Lawana’s face. Immediately she reached out and carefully stroked his head.

“That’s right, princess,” Harry said, smiling at his daughter and reaching out for her hand, squeezing it gently, “That’s right. Nice and gentle with the kitty. He’s soft, isn’t he? Nice and soft…”

“Babe, I’m just gonna see if my laptop is charged yet,” Louis said a few moments later, rising to his feet and bending down to place Lawana in Harry’s waiting arms, not forgetting to place a gentle peck on Harry’s mouth. “I’ll be back in a jiffy.”

“Okay Lou. Oh, wait, wait…” he called, watching Louis pause at the doorway, “would you be a good hubby and bring me a cup of tea?”

Louis scoffed but couldn’t keep the fond look off his face. After all these years, it really was quite nonsensical that they still acted like love-struck idiots newly hit with Cupid’s arrow.

“Anything for my beloved fairy-man. But you’re making the next one. And you still owe me a blowjob,” he smirked, turning to leave but not completely out of earshot for Harry’s voice shouting after him as he went.

“…I HAVEN’T FORGOTTEN. I’M WAITING TO SURPRISE YOU!” Harry said, chuckling to himself as he recalled the last two week’s attempts at being intimate with Louis. Lawana had a habit of howling from her nursery whenever Harry and Louis were wound up in a lip-locking war. Harry would sigh and leave one last lingering kiss on Louis mouth, gravelly voice promising they’d commence later. Except later never came. The last time Harry had blown Louis, the baby monitor on the bedside table went off with Lawana’s wails, seconds before Louis had been about to cum. “Shit,” Harry had groaned, slipping Louis out of his mouth with a popping sound and Louis had looked an absolute wreck, a disaster with flushed cheeks and sweat running down his face, a look of utter agony on his face. “Baby, we’ll… we’ll finish this later. Promise. I’ll go to her. You relax. Love you,” he’d said, kissing Louis’ forehead, eyelids, cheeks and mouth before turning to leave and tend to their upset daughter.

If Harry had learnt anything in regards to balancing intimate time with Louis with child-rearing, he’d leant that time was precious. Sex had to be quick, unless one of the boy’s was on babysitting duty, then they could take all the time they needed. Other than that, taking advantage of when Lawana was sleeping was of utmost importance.

“Hey baby,” Harry spoke to Lawana, moving to lay on his back as Monty slunk away down the hall, “where did Dadda go, huh? Where’s Dadda?” Harry asked as she placed two warm hands on either side of his cheek, looking into his eyes with her head tilted to the side slightly. “You know, aunt Gem Gemms is coming round for tea tonight, won’t that be nice?” he asked.

“DADDY!” Lawana shouted, completely out of the blue. It was the first time she’d said it. Harry gasped almost comically, eyes wide as saucers.

“What did you… Did you just? You did!” Harry grinned, laughing happily and hugging her tightly, kissing her temple. “That’s right, baby. I’m Daddy. I’m Daddy, and I love you, so so much.”

“Daddy!” she grinned, clapping her hands together, pleased by his reaction. Harry beamed again, dimples drawn out so deep they were like little craters on the face of the moon as she continued chanting it, “DaddyDaddyDaddyDaddyDaddaDaDaDa”.

“What’s all this commotion I hear?” came Louis’ voice as he strolled in with his laptop under one arm and Harry’s cup of tea in the other. “Here you are love,” he said, bending to pass Harry his cuppa.

“Lou… Lou, babe, she said Daddy. She called me Daddy,” Harry grinned, taking the cup from Louis.

“Damn it, Harold! Trust me to be out of the room!”

“Haw’ld,” Lawana repeated with a chuckle, observing Louis’ stunned expression.

“Jesus Christ! She’s a sponge! I called you ‘Harold’ and she just-”

“I know, babe,” Harry grinned, before the smile slid quickly from his face and his brows furrowed, an intense look on his face as he turned to Louis seriously, “Be careful with cussing around her, then. She’ll pick that up. No bad language around her, Lou. I mean it.”

“Oh, come off it. ‘Jesus’ is hardly a cuss. Nothing wrong with it, eh Lawana, darling?”

“DADDA!”

Harry and Louis were silent for a long moment as they stared at her in amazement before turning to look at one another, both stunned.

“She just…”

“I know! Yes, love. That’s right. I’m Dadda,” Louis said, smiling at her proudly.

“Dadda,” Lawana said again, eyes curved into happy crescent moons as she wriggled out of Harry’s arms and crawled over to Louis who was once again sat on the floor beside them. She slunk her way onto his lap and curled her arms around his neck, laying her head on his chest.

“Dadda,” she repeated, softly, a chubby hand raising to clasp his cheek gently.

“Yes baby, I’m Dadda and I’m not going anywhere. I’ll always be here. And so will your Daddy. Where’s Daddy? Lawana, where’s Daddy?” Louis asked, and Harry felt his heart melt when she slowly lifted her head and looked directly at Harry, pointing at him.

“Daddy. Haw’ld,” she said, causing Louis to throw his head back, shouting with laughter.

“Great. Now she thinks my name is actually ‘Harold’. Thanks Lou.”

“Anytime, Cupcake.”

“Don’t call me that.”

“But you’re my Cupcake and this is our Pumpkin. Our smart cookie…” he said, kissing Lawana’s head.

“Yeah, and you’re my Boobear…” Harry whispered huskily in Louis’ ear, sliding closer and leaning in to kiss him softly, sweetly and lingering, Louis’ free hand getting lost in his husband’s wild curls. Lawana remained perched between them, wriggling in Louis’ lap and sliding her way off and onto Harry’s lap, babbling nonsense words now. When she finally seemed to grow impatient of their kisses and playful pecks, she pushed Louis away and glared at him.

“Cake,” she repeated, reaching for Harry with grabby hands. “Cudcake,” Lawana added, beaming at Harry as Louis roared with laughter.


	2. Chapter 2

_Five years later_

Louis began waking slowly, the gray skies making its daily appearance in England. Blinking the sleep away from his eyes, he shifted to the left to see Harry sound asleep, leg hanging off the edge of the bed. Soft little snores emitted from his husband every few moments or so. Louis propped up on his elbow, resting his hand on his knuckles. He admired the sleeping man - age began to appear on Harry’s broad features. His hair, however, was still a wild curly mess as it had been during their years as One Direction. Each day with Harry was an adventure. Louis didn’t know where he would be if Harry hadn’t made a mess on him in the XFactor bathroom all those years ago. Louis was so engrossed on watching his husband sleep that he hadn’t noticed a small child scamper into their open bedroom. “Dada!” the child said happily. She climbed in between her fathers and slid into the crook of Louis’ arm.

”Hi, pumpkin,” he whispered. He put his finger to his lips. Lawana copied Louis’ movements. Crawling from out his arm, she climbed over Harry and patted his cheek. “Pumpkin, don’t wake up daddy. He’s tired.” Lawana didn’t listen. Patting his cheek gently, she began to chant.

”Daddy, daddy. Daddy, wake up. Daddy, I’m hungry. I want pancakes or maybe cereal. Can I have fruit? Daddy!” Stirring from being woken up from their five year old, Harry turned on his back and Lawana jumped into his lap. Harry chuckled, sleep lacing his voice. Louis wanted to smother him with kisses.

”Good morning, princess!” He jutted his chin up to Louis. “Good morning, Boo.” Louis leaned down to kiss him. Lawana covered her eyes, squealing as most kids do when they have the unfortunate event of watching their parents kiss in front of them. Pulling away, Harry tickled her sides. The sounds of her shrieking with laughter had Louis feeling warm from his head to his toes. Finally, she hopped off and skipped toward the kitchen, talking about dragons. Harry went after her as Louis went to another room. Cracking open the door, he saw their little baby boy, Francisco, kicking about and making random sounds. Harry and Louis had seen Francisco during another orphanage visit in Colombia. As with Lawana, they fell immediately in love with him and asked about adoption. Six months later, he was in England with his new family.

”Hi, mi amor,” he cooed. Francisco’s ears perked to Louis’ voice and he babbled happily. Lifting the child out of his crib and onto the changing table. Louis sang him a song as he changed him. Francisco gave him a gummy smile; his chubby cheeks creating dimples. Just as he was finishing, the smell of pancakes and bacon and eggs mixed together in the air, making his stomach rumble loudly in response. Perching Francisco on his hip, Louis walked into the kitchen where Lawana was sat at the table, syrup on her face already.

”Dada!” she screamed. “Daddy made me pancakes! They’re so yummy-nummy.” Lawana then rattled off about unicorns live in the forest and how mermaids make music with rocks. Louis ruffled her hair. Harry took the baby, bottle ready. Sitting down next to their daughter, he began to feed Francisco as Louis prepared his tea. Sitting in comfortable silence, aside from the occasional scrape of Lawana’s fork against her plate, Harry cleared his throat.

”Hey, pumpkin, guess what today is?”

Her brows knitted together as she chewed. “What?”

”Friday. Which means one of your uncles gets you for the weekend!”

Lawana cheered - she loved spending time with her uncles. Even if it meant coming home with streaks of color in her hair. Louis almost never forgave Liam for that until he told him through his laughter that it washes right out. Finishing their breakfast, Louis cleared the kitchen as Harry set up Princess and the Frog on the TV for Lawana and Francisco to watch. Lawana twirled in front of the tv, singing along while Fransico stood in his crib, bouncing. Louis and Harry sat on the couch, Harry’s head in Louis’ lap. Louis began to stroke the younger man’s hair absentmindedly. He never expected to be married to someone he loved so much it hurt him in a way that he had never felt before - and he wouldn’t have it any other way; he never expected to have two beautiful, smart, talented (and messy) kids. In a way, his life changed for the better because of his little family and he wouldn’t have it any other way.

After the movie ended, Francisco was sound asleep without the help of a bottle or Harry’s voice soothing him. Louis put him back in his room while Lawana pulled her father by the hand in her room. “Daddy, let’s play tea party.” She went to her closet and rummaged for a bit until she pulled out a sparkly blue tutu. “Put this on for me, please,” she added. Harry admired her manners. He wasn’t going to raise a barbarian. “Oh, these too!” She thrusted a pair of fairy wings at him. Harry knew better to question her. Slipping on the tutu over his pajama bottoms, he adjusted it. As he was slipping on the fairy wings, he looked up to see that her play table was set up as were her guests

”Miss Tomlinson,” Harry said, “may I be seated?” Lawana’s back was turned away from Harry as she was in her kitchen, preparing tea and biscuits. He sat between a stuffed penguin named Mr. Prince and a elephant named Miss Erika. He began to make ‘conversation’ with them. Apparently Mr. Prince was married and Miss Erika was working on a new album. So much had been going on since the last tea party two weeks ago.

”Daddy, would you like some tea?” Lawana asked, as she put down the plastic kettle on the table. Harry said yes and she poured pretend tea (which was really apple juice). She poured a cup for each animal and placed a biscuit on a napkin for Harry and her animals and herself. They talked over tea. Harry was having such a good time that he hadn’t notice Louis leaning against the door frame, watching them, heart eyes and all. Louis was sure his heart was going to explode from all the fond and love he had for his husband and daughter. Soon, the doorbell rang. Louis didn’t move fast enough to answer as Harry caught him staring. He gave him a flirty wink. Following Lawana to the door, he asked her if he remembered what to say when answering the door.

”Who is it, please?”

"It’s Zayn,” the voice said on the other side of the door. Lawana’s eyes brightened as Harry unlocked the door. Lawana flung herself to Zayn’s legs and he laughed. “Hey there!” His eyes fell on Harry, who was still wearing his tea party get up, face scrunching in amusement. “Bro, what the fu-heck.” Harry shoved him.

”We were playing tea party!” Zayn snorted. Louis appeared with the baby, a backpack and a diaper bag. Handing it off to Zayn, they chatted a while before the three went off to start a weekend of fun together. Louis slipped behind Harry, pressing his chest to his back, the material of the fairy wings brushing against his nipples. He shuddered slightly.

"Hey."

"Hi." He kisses the back of shoulder. "We’ve got the whole house to ourselves." Louis hummed, continuing to kiss Harry’s shoulder.

"We do."

"I was thinking we could use the time for ourselves," Harry struggled to not moan as Louis bit him.


	3. Chapter 3

 

Heart pounding madly behind his ribcage, Harry tried to remember how to breathe, the oxygen like flames to his lungs as Louis slumped against him, his final shuddering moan echoing in Harry’s ear, causing his navel to tingle. Louis’ skin was burning against Harry’s, as if he’d been lying next to a scorching fire, absorbing the flames, or camped out all day beneath the blowout of the scorching sun. Harry couldn’t think. All he could conceive of was the heat, the delirium.

It was hard to tell how long they lay there panting, wet and sticky. Harry couldn’t speak for Louis, but his brain wasn’t comprehending anything until the thrashing of his heart began to slow. After several moments, Louis moved off Harry – still clad in his blue tutu and strap-on fairy wings and smirked at the rather obscene sight of Harry’s own jizz splattered over the blue nylon material of the tutu.

“How was that, princess?” Louis purred in Harry’s ear before biting the lobe gently, moving to lay on his side, facing Harry who looked a wreck with his already pink plump lips now swollen, red and throbbing. Green eyes glazed over and stray curls sticking in sweat to his forehead, Harry’s cheeks were grazed with a flash of red.

When the numbness began to subside, Harry slipped his large paws on Louis’ lower back and dragged him closer, pressing their chests together and leaning in to kiss his husband softly, sweetly.

“Mmhmm, good, Daddy,” he responded huskily, “the best,” he added, still immersed in the role-play with a drowsy yet besotted look on his face.

“I’m glad. Shotgun being naughty nurse tonight…” Louis said, biting his lower lip and earning a deep and raspy chuckle from Harry. They had a very give-take power dynamic. It worked. Sometimes Harry was Daddy, sometimes Louis was Daddy. Sometimes Harry had to be punished and sometimes Louis desperately needed punishing.

Falling into calm silence and tangled together, Harry lay there and watched as Louis wiggled his way down the messily unmade and rumpled bed, propping his head against Harry’s broad chest, listening to the constant thumping of his heart, his expression shifting into pure halcyon stillness as if Harry’s lifeline was the softest lullaby he’d ever heard. Very gently he began tracing the outline of Harry’s swallows, deep blue eyes gazing up into Harry’s own thoughtfully.

“You okay, love?” Harry asked, slipping his fingers through Louis’ hair. The older man looked astonishingly vulnerable from this angle and Harry felt himself swoon and it was ridiculous, the wave of protectiveness Harry felt overcome him.

“Yeah… just… just thinking…” he mumbled, casting his gaze away from Harry’s direct stare and pressing his face into Harry’s chest, hiding.

“About?”

“It’s stupid. Never mind. Let’s get up and enjoy the day. Or we could play FIFA?” Louis asked, perking up in a way that didn’t convince Harry who cast a suspicion eye upon him.

“Baby, just tell me? Please… c’mon…we tell each other everything…” Harry pouted and when Louis sighed, Harry knew he’d won, a big goofy grin dragging his dimples out.

“We might tell each other ninety-five percent of the stuff that goes through our minds but I wouldn’t say we tell each other _everything_ ,” Louis said, “after all… a little mystery is good...”

“Just shut up and tell me already.”

“You shut up! Okay, okay. So. So, it’s stupid, like I said, but… I guess I’m just…like…I’m worried that this is eventually gonna derail. There. Happy?”

“Derail? You mean, you and I? You mean… ‘us?’”

“Yes Harry, what else could I possibly mean? Jesus, I’m married to the world’s greatest genius,” Louis answered dryly, earning a playful shove from Harry.

“Babe, you don’t have to worry about that. We’re always gonna be together,” Harry said with the greatest confidence without wavering.

“T-That’s what I hope. I guess… I’m just scared, okay? I’m scared that it’s like everyone says… ‘if it’s too good to be true it usually is.’ I’m scared it’s gonna be like Mum and Dad all over again. I mean, don’t you ever worry about it? I had to watch my parents go through a horrible divorce. The same happened to you…when…when Des left, right? You remember what it was like? I never want to subject our children to that and I-”

Harry pressed his palm to Louis’ mouth to shut him up. “That’s never gonna be us. Let me tell you something, Boo,” he whispered, fingers lingering at Louis’ jawline as he tipped his chin up and made Louis meet his eyes, “we’re lucky, when you think about it. We’re the lucky ones. Not everyone finds this…what we have. When we met in the X Factor bathroom, I swear it was fate. Both going to The Script, before we met, before we knew we’d even be thrown together in a band. You’re my best friend, Lou. You’re my husband. And together we have two beautiful kids and I couldn’t be happier. Just… Just remember, how hard it was, on the road, hiding our relationship? Remember?”

Louis nodded, moving back on his side aligned against Harry, head propped in the palm of his hand, “I remember.”

“I’m so grateful, after all that bullshit they put us through, to finally be where we are. Maybe it sounds overly idealistic or naive to say this will be forever, but what we have is different. What use is this ship without a compass anyhow?” Harry asked, pointing to the ship on his bicep, earning a soft smile from Louis. Harry’s fingers drifted from Louis’ hair and fell to his tan arm, finding the spot where the compass was tattooed in green ink and tracing his fingers around the lines.

“What use is an anchor without a rope, hmm?” Louis responded, leaning up to kiss Harry warmly, slipping his hand to clasp Harry’s nape as the kiss deepened.

Breaking the kiss and taking a depth breath, the slope of Harry’s nose rubbed against the tip of Louis’, his arms curling around the smaller man to hold him tight.

“One day, Boo, we’ll be a pair of old codgers trying to race each other on mobility scooters while our children despair in embarrassment.”

“Promise?”

“I promise.”

 

*****

 

 

Harry had just finished putting the dishes from the washer away in their rightful places before checking on how the chocolate cookies were doing in the oven and then turned to check the time, worrying his lower lip.

“I know that look,” came Louis’ amused voice. “Don’t fret, love. Zayn hasn’t let the boogie man kidnap our perfectly behaved little angels… he’ll be here soon. I bet he’ll be glad he’s returning them. Looking after Franciso in any case is good practice…” Louis commented, sneaking up behind Harry who had returned to the kitchen counter to wipe it down with a wet cloth.

“Hmm,” Harry responded absently, wondering why Zayn said he’d drop the kids off at ten and it was now noon…

“In fact, if anything, it might just put them off having a kid of their own, huh?”

“It’s not that bad.”

“You say that now. Wait until Lawana’s a teenager. You do remember adolescence, yeah?”

Harry groaned. “Lou, I’d rather not think about our baby growing up right now if that’s okay with you. I’d rather live in the illusion that she’ll be our little girl forever, if you don’t mind.”

“Yeah yeah, that and to think of Lawana as becoming a woman is to accept that we’re going to be old. Old. Old ancient men reminiscing about their former youthful glory days…when they had screaming teenage girls in the palm of their hand…”

Louis was still talking when Zayn pushed open the French double doors, his shoulder brushing the wind chimes ahead of him, clashing together in his wake. Liam was carrying Franciso in a baby sling around his front, tuffs of chestnut hair visible on his tiny head. Lawana was sat on Zayn’s shoulders and he held onto her thighs to support her, chubby little arms wound tightly around his neck. Between them, Zayn and Liam were carting Lawana’s backpack with her colouring book and pens, Miss Erika and Mr Prince, and all of Franciso’s baby supplies including the milk bottle formula.

“About time! I was getting worried!” Harry cried, a look of relief flooding his features as Lawana squealed, “Daddy! Daddy! Dadda!” and squirming on top of Zayn’s shoulders, making grabby hands for Harry and Louis. Zayn settled Lawana to her feet and in a heartbeat she had crashed into their legs, hugging them around the knees.

“Hey pumpkin,” Louis smiled down at her, scuffing her hair up in a way that made her scrunch her nose up, “Did you have fun with uncle Zayn and Liam?”

“Mmhmm, we played Hide and Seek and we played tag and we build blankey fort and me and Zayn draw you a picture!” Lawana beamed, arms outstretched for Harry (who Louis couldn’t help admiring as the epitome of cute, clad in his kitchen apron). Harry picked their daughter up and gave her a big kiss on the mouth as Liam carefully handed a wailing Franciso to Louis.

“Hey little guy, what’s all the fuss about now?” Louis asked, cupping Franciso’s head and holding him close to his chest. The baby relaxed within minutes, burying his nose in the crook of Louis’ neck.

“Come in, guys. Sit down. I’ve baked some cookies,” Harry said, beckoning Zayn and Liam to sit down at the breakfast bench.

“Mmmm, I thought I could smell cookies!” Liam said with his cheeky smile, seating himself down next to Zayn as Harry turned and placed some oven mitts on, multitasking as he was, and paying undivided attention to Lawana as he spoke. History had taught Harry and Louis that you didn’t only half-listen to her.

“Is that right, baby? Will you show Dadda and me your pictures?” Harry asked, bending to open the oven and pull the tray with the perfectly baked cookies out.

“Bless,” Louis smirked, kissing Franciso’s cheek, eyes shining as he observed his husband, “Boys, is my husband not the perfect domestic goddess? Just look at him.”

“Harry’s been playing domestic goddess since you first moved in together,” Zayn answered, “nothing we haven’t seen before.”

“Yeah, in fact…” Liam said slowly, setting questioning brown eyes upon Louis, “when was the last time you cooked for Haz? As far as I can recall, you haven’t cooked him anything since the whole ‘chicken stuffed with mozzarella wrapped in parma ham with a side of homemade mash’ day.”

“Excuuuuse me, Payno, but I’ll have you know I cooked Harry a lovely meal for our last anniversary-”

“Oh, how generous…”

“I’m going to wallop you in a second.”

“I’d like to see you try.” Liam goaded while Lawana and Zayn dug through her backpack looking for the drawings.

“Daddy, Daddy, I founds them, here!” Lawana shouted as Harry served up the cookies before carting the teapot over and pouring all the boys a cup.

“Heeey, this is wonderful!” Harry beamed, staring at the drawing she’d made. It featured him and Louis as stick figures with very tall legs and very short arms. The short stick arms were interlinked, suggesting they were holding hands. The only identifying signifier was that one stick figure had a crazy disarray of scribbled brown locks, so Harry guessed that was him and the other one was Louis. On Harry’s right was a stick figure he guessed was Lawana, wearing a triangle for a dress, and on the other side there was Franciso, who appeared to be a large head with no body to speak of. Above them was a sun with multiple rays beaming off, the face of the sun complete with a smiley face. “I love it. Look Boo!” Harry grinned, showing Louis the drawing.

“Wow, aren’t you the little artist in the making?” Louis asked, taking the drawing and sticking it to the fridge. “I think with Zayn as your mentor, you’re sure to go far,” he winked. Lawana flushed with pride, swinging on the breakfast bench stool.

“What’s mentor mean?” she enquired.

“A mentor? It means… like, it’s usually an older person who teaches a younger person, such as yourself, something. Could be art. Could be music. Could be song-writing. Could be soccer. Whatever you want to do. Your mentor helps you train and they help you get better.”

“Oooh. Zayn is my mentor,” she grinned, moving to sit on his lap. Zayn held a hand to her tummy and lowered his head to kiss her cheek.

“We can do art together anytime you like. But I’m uncle first, mentor second, okay?” he asked, flicking the tip of her button nose gently.

“Be back in a sec, guys. This one needs his nap,” Louis said, looking down at the drowsy baby held tight against his chest. Franciso’s head was lolling and his eyes kept falling shut, but he seemed to be trying to fight it. “Oh, and thanks for having them for the weekend,” he added, turning away toward the hall.

“Anytime Lou,” Liam shouted as Louis retreated up the staircase and toward the nursery. “So,” Liam smirked, turning to Harry, a look of mischief glinting from teddy bear eyes, “did you and Tommo get up to anything fun while the kids were away?”

Harry gave Liam a hard look. “Seriously, Li? What do you think?”

“I bet you were at it nonstop without a crying baby to tend to…”

Flinging his hands over Lawana’s ears in a look of mock horror, Harry shouted with comically bulging eyes, “Not in front of innocent ears!”

“Daaaadddyyy,” she whined, flinging his hands away from her ears and scooting herself off Zayn’s lap and onto Liam’s, wrapping her arms around his neck.

“Anyway, baby, guess who’s coming to see us tonight?”

“Who?”

“Aunt Gem Gemms!”

“Yaaaaay! Gem Gemms and me can pwlay dwess up! I have princess costume for her! You and Dadda will watch our pormance’”.

 

*****

 

 

True to her word, Lawana had cajoled Gemma into dressing up as a princess, a fairy princess, in fact. She was clad in a pink tutu with sparkly opaque wings with rhinestones and a flower crown. Lawana was dressed as a traditional princess in a bright scarlet dress, a cape and a plastic gold crown. Together they danced and acted out scenes, casting pretend magic spells with the plastic star wand as Harry and Louis clapped and cheered, observing from the sofa, curled up together.

Having exhausted herself in fun and games all evening, Lawana practically fell asleep once her head hit the pillow, but not before Harry and Louis had tucked her in, giving her a goodnight kiss and turning the light out. She’d woken up a moment later, complaining that it was too dark.

“Did you want the nightlight on, pumpkin?” Louis had asked.

“Yes. Otherwise boogie man will get me.”

“Your Daddy and I would never let a boogie mean steal you,” Louis answered, as Harry wandered in on giraffe legs to flick her Little Mermaid nightlight on.

“Nighty night,” she’d yawned, closing her eyes and drifting off as Harry and Louis took once last look at her through the gap in the door before closing it.

Now that the kids were both fast asleep, Harry and Louis were able to crank open a bottle of wine with Gemma. She was sat in front of the large fireplace with Monty purring on her lap while Louis lay on the sofa like a cat curled up, his hand lost in Harry’s curls. Harry was seated on the floor next to Gemma, his back against the sofa.

“You know, Mum always says this, but…you guys are such good parents. I mean, you’re really, really good,” she said thoughtfully, swirling her wine around in circles, observing her brother whose face was flushed red from a little too much wine. Every now and again he giggled at things that weren’t supposed to be remotely funny, earning an eye-roll from Louis.

“Glad you think so,” Louis drawled, nails scratching Harry’s scalp. Harry’s eyes fell shut and his head lolled back, enjoying the sensation.

“You guys are sickening, really. Always have been.”

“Why thank you,” Harry smiled, eyes still closed as he leaned into Louis’ touch.

“Seriously though, have you guys thought of having more kids? I think you ought to have a big family. A big chaotic Larry Stylinson family. The Larry shippers will cream themselves.”

Harry’s nose turned up at that while Louis barked back a laugh.

“Gems, that’s crass.”

“What? You know it’s true. But more kids? Yay or nay?”

“I dunno, I’d like more…” Harry confessed, eyes peeling open and finding Louis’ who smiled softly and reached for Harry’s hand and brought it to his lips, placing a kiss on the surface of his palm.

“Lou?” Gemma questioned.

“Yeah? Yeah, I’d like more, too. One big happy family…” he said sarcastically, “but really, yeah. Of course. I come from a big family. I want a whole tribe…”

“A whole tribe huh, Boo? How about a soccer team of kids named ‘seventeen black’?” Harry smirked.

“Oi, watch it,” Louis said, reaching down and pinching Harry’s side. Harry squealed and jumped in fright, spilling his wine on his chest and saturating his shirt.

“Look what you made me do!” Harry growled, trying to maintain his stern glare, reaching round to grab Louis’ wrists and drag him down and onto his lap. Louis struggled and tried to resist, screeching and laughing at varied intervals as Harry, bigger and stronger, managed to pin Louis down on the floor, holding his wrists back.

“Erm…if this is about to turn sexual I think I’ll head to bed…” Gemma advised, observing as Harry straddled Louis hips and swatted him. Louis wriggled about and tried to get Harry off him by kicking his backside.

“N-No, G-Gemma, don’t worry,” Louis wheezed underneath Harry’s weight, “that isn’t about to happen anytime soon. Probably will hold of giving in for another week, at least.”

That stopped Harry in his tracks. He rolled of Louis and staggered to his feet with a puzzled look on his face. “A whole week? Whyyyy?” he whined, pouting.

“Because I can.”

“Like _you_ can hold out…”

“Watch me.”

“And why do you want to hold out on me, oh sweet, dear husband?”

“It’s all part of effective training, my dear. I must train my princess well, and that includes teaching him to be obedient and not rebelling against Daddy…” Louis drawled while Gemma sat there pretending to gag herself, motioning her finger back and forth down her throat.

“Don’t mind me, while I vomit my dinner up…” she groaned. “I did not need to know that, thanks a lot Tomlinson.”

“Hey, if you don’t like it, leave,” he answered, sassy as always.

“If you two are quite done being gross, I believe we were talking about future kids and expanding the Tomlinson-Styles legacy.”

“Tomlinson-Styles,” Louis muttered. “Just Tomlinson, thank you, miss Styles,” he said. Gemma stuck her tongue out at him and turned to Harry, questioning him with widened blue eyes.

“What else did you wanna know?” he asked, impatient. “Yes, we want more kids. Stop nagging me, jeez.”

“Well, I am the favourite aunt, so it’s my right to know. Are you gonna keep adopting or have some of biologically?”

“Bio… what?” Harry asked, completely thrown, the alcohol slowing his brain down and drowsing his senses.

“Biologically. Biological children,” Gemma answered, stressing each syllable slowly as if speaking to a three year old. “Louis, thank God your husband became a pop star instead of a university graduate…”

“Heeeey…”

“You’re talking about surrogacy, right, love?” Louis asked.

“Yeah. Exactly. You get a surrogate and egg donor. Mix it with your…”

“Sperm,” Louis supplied.

“…yes, and then boom! You have a baby that is genetically half yours! I mean, adoption is great. I think you should keep adopting, if you can. But wouldn’t it be cool to see yourselves in a baby, as well? It could be one big happy Larry Stylinson family…” Gemma cackled, throwing back the remainder of her wine.

Harry hadn’t really contemplated it before now, but the more he thought about it, the more he suddenly wanted to do it. A heartbeat later Harry was imploring Louis with the lost-puppy-in-the-rain look Louis recalled from the Thai orphanage when he’d found Lawana.

“I don’t know, Harry. I mean, yes, I want to have more kids, but… I wasn’t thinking right now. I thought we’d wait until Baby boy was a bit older?”

“But Lou, if we got a surrogate organised soon, he’d be nearly two anyway by the time the baby is born! I think it would be neat… and you know, to have the experience of seeing the baby grow… scans…watching the baby be born… those are things you miss out on with adoption, that’s all.”

Louis sighed, clutching Harry’s hand, fingers slot between the spaces of Harry’s, and all at once, Harry could see Louis give in, a reflective look in his deep blue eyes.

“You should count your lucky stars that you manage to pull the charm out of the bag every time, Haz, because, I swear…  just one crooked smile look and I’m toast. Gemma, he knows exactly what he’s doing!” Louis accused, narrowing his eyes at a smirking Harry, “He knows what he’s doing with that big dimple grin and those fucking misty twinkle eyes…”

“So…that’s a yes then?” Harry said with a smile up to his eyes.

“It could be the wine talking, but yes. Let’s get another baby.”

“Yes, yes, yes!” Harry slurred, dragging Louis to the floor again and crushing him in a giant hug. “I love you, Boo. Thank you,” he murmoured, tilting their foreheads together.

“I love you too, you great oaf. Now get off me!”

Harry let Louis go, watching him retreat to the sofa and unable to keep his heart eyes off him.

“You know, Lou. I was thinking…”

“Yes, what is it?” Louis asked, rubbing his temples.

“We could get two surrogates and both contribute our genes. That’d be sick.”

Louis stared at Harry like he was crazy. “You want four kids under the age of five? Babe, you do everything on a whim. You should really think first… like… Mum didn’t really have it easy raising me and four girls. And we were a bit more spaced out…”

“It’d be nice to see yourself in a baby, wouldn’t it? Or who knows. Genes are intriguing. A baby with your genes could end up looking like Jay. A baby with my genes might end up as Anne reincarnated…”

Gemma, who had been watching them converse back and forth curiously, rolled her eyes at that.

“Or Des reincarnated?” Louis supplied with a mischievous smile.

“What are you implying?”

“Nothing at all,” he answered mock innocently.

“Good.”

“Boys…” Gemma cut in, “I may be a little tipsy, but I have a proposition for you. I’d be willing to be your surrogate number one, or whatever, with Louis. You know, we go to the clinic and they put his spunk in my egg in a lab and bam, you have the closest thing possible to a biological Harry/Louis baby. Like, you can’t physically do it, but Harry and me share half the same DNA. People always say we look alike. Think about it. You’d have an actual, nearly-a-hundred-per-cent-Larry-Stylinson-baby.”

A long stretch of silence followed these words, the only noise coming from the crackling of the fire and Monty as he meowed and hopped off Gemma’s lap, stretching and slinking away.

“You’d… You’d do that, for us?” Harry whispered, staring wide-eyed at his sister.

She shrugged, “Sure, why not?”

“Why? I mean, not that we don’t appreciate the offer, but-” Louis began.

Gemma crawled closer and reached for her brother’s hands, squeezing them tightly, “I just want to give you want you can’t physically create for yourselves,” she said softly, blue eyes the same shape as Harry’s meeting his, a shade of green, like clear jade.

Harry’s shocked expression melted into a typical goofy look, before an almost shy and unassuming smile quirked the corners of his lips as he looked down at his lap, playing with the tears at the knees of his black jeans.

“You… You sure it’s not the alcohol talking there Gemms?” Harry asked with a smile.

“No. If anything, the wine loosened my fear of actually bringing this up. I’ve been thinking about it for a while now. I even discussed with Mum…who started crying when I told her I’d be willing to do it… naturally.”

“Gemma, are you sure about this?” Louis asked, scooting to the floor on his knees beside Harry who already had big fat tears leaking from his eyes.

“I’m sure. I just wanna be able to do this for you,” she said, when Harry suddenly pulled her into a bone-crushing hug, tears streaming down his face as he held her. Louis, hanging back hesitantly with his hand cautiously resting on Harry’s shoulder, was suddenly dragged into the hug by Harry, pulling him into a group hug. Louis’ arms slung around Gemma and Harry’s waists, and Harry felt his heart, if possible, expand in his chest, growing bigger and stronger behind his ribcage.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this is late. This has more exclamation points than needed. Again, I'm sorry I'm lame >:(

Later that night, Louis and Harry were sat in bed - Louis reading, Harry scrolling through twitter. “Babe,” Louis said, breaking the silence. “Harry. Harry.” Finally Harry made a sound in his throat. “So… About Gemma. When do you want to start?” Puckering his lips, he scooted the laptop away from him. Their conversation began replaying in his head. Out of anyone in the world, Harry’s sister, had volunteered to be a surrogate for them. Tears pricked Harry’s eyes.

"Uh, whenever Gems wants to. We shouldn’t rush into it," he said.

"How about tomorrow?"

Harry knocked his shoulder into Louis’. “Lou!” Louis shrugged.

"It was just a suggestion. We don’t have too. But the sooner we do it, the sooner our baby will be here," Louis said excitedly. "Well, my baby." he tacked on. Harry rolled his eyes. _God, don’t make this child a sass master like its father,_ he prayed. Harry rest his head on Louis’ shoulder and Louis bought a hand up to run through his hair. He began whispering sweet nothings in his ear when Harry brought up the idea of owning an animal.

"A WHAT?" Louis nearly shouted. "Harry, you know I don’t do well animals! I barely had any while growing up. My sisters were enough! Besides, we have Monty."

Harry began to laugh. “Monty was here before the kids and he’s not very social. Plus, I said a dog not a fucking horse, Tomlinson. I think it’d be great for Sisco and Lala.” Louis scowled. “It’ll keep them busy while we prepare for baby number three.” Louis continued to scowl. “Besides, this’ll take less time than preparing you and Gemma.” Harry was positive he heard his husband growl when their bedroom door opened.

"Daddy? Dadda?" came a sleepy voice. They both looked over and saw Lawana in the doorway clutching her blanket, rubbing her eyes.

"Yes baby? What’s wrong?" Louis asked.

 

"I’m scared. I had a dream th’t a big monster came and ate me." She began to walk over to her fathers and climbed in between them. "I’m going to sleep with you." Harry and Louis separated to make room for their daughter.

"It’s okay sweetheart. No monster will get you. Me and Dadda will protect you," Harry soothed. Lawana snuggled closer to Harry and mumbled a thank you. Pressing a kiss to the crown of her head, both men turned off the lights and went to bed, arms cucooning their daughter, fingers laced together.

The next morning, Louis woken up by singing. “ABC, it’s as easy as 1, 2, 3…” Grumpily he rolled over and glanced at his phone. He groaned and snuggled down deeper. He hadn’t gotten much sleep since Lawana had used him as a punching bag during the night. Why couldn’t she use Harry was beyond Louis’ comprehension. Louis fell back asleep only to be awakened again by little hands gently smacking his cheeks.

"Dadda!!!" Lawana shrieked. "Wake up! Daddy says we’re going to do something fun today!" Lawana ran from the bedroom, laughing to herself. Louis wondered fun Harry had planned. Then he remembered.

***

An hour and a half later, all four were standing in the London humane society. Muffled barks and meows and howls made their way to the front of the of the building. If heart eyes were an actual thing, Lawana’s eyes would be just that. “Daddy, I hear puppies! Are we going to get a puppy, Dadda?” she asked. Tugging on his beanie, Louis sighed.

"Maybe, sweetie. We have to see." Soon, a short black woman with an Afro so big you could barely see her eyes.

"Hello!" she greeted in a thick Bahamian accent. "What can I help you with?" Harry grinned so wide Louis was sure he was going to sprain a muscle.

"Hiiii. Me and my husband are looking for a pup for our kids," Harry said. Louis tensed, waiting for words of assault to hit him and Harry; believe it or not, people were still ignorant in the future. He laced his fingers through Harry’s clammy hand and squeezed. Harry squeezed back. Instead of nasty words, they were met with a friendly smile. "Ah, of course! What kind of dog did you have in mind?"

"A dog that requires little excerise," Louis supplied as Harry interjected with, "Something small."

The lady laughed and came around the desk. “Come and follow me.” Lawana grabbed Louis’ hand and pulled him towards the adjacent door.

"I hope you’re satisfied, Harold!" Harry stuck his togune out and pushed Francisco who was asleep in stroller.

Twenty minutes later, all five of them were standing in front of tiny “play areas” for the dogs. Lawana was in heaven as she pointed to every dog and claimed it was a puppy and cooed at it. “I want that dog, Dadda!” Lawana said as she pointed to yet another pup. Louis’ eyes trailed to the sleeping pup and he felt his heart swell. Lying on a doggy bed was an off white colored pitbull, snoozing away. Louis aww’d when he saw it had a heart for a nose.

"Harry! Look at this one!" Louis tugged at Harry’s arm to get his attention. "Can we go in?" he asked the woman, whose name, they had found out, Sabrina opened the gate and they all crowded in the area.

"Puppy," Lawana whispered as she stared at the pit. She reached out to pet it when Harry stopped her. Sabrina assured him it was okay. Louis bent down to Lawana’s size and helped her pet the sleeping dog. "Puppy’s soft like Loki!" (She was in love with Liam’s dog and would not shut up about him.) Louis hummed his agreement when the dog began to wake. They were met with dark brown eyes; Louis did everything to not scoop it up and take it home.

Harry stood by his husband and daughter as they interacted with the dog. It began to sniff around when Lawana stuck her hand in the dog’s face. He sniffed it and gave it a cautious lick before licking almost obsessively. She giggled. “It tickles!” The dog went over to Louis, put his front paws on his thigh, begging to be picked up. Confused, Louis didn’t know what to do. The dog did it again and again.

"Lou, someone likes you," Harry teased. Louis slowly picked up the dog and cradled it in his arms. The dog began to kiss all over Louis’ face. He struggled to keep from laughing but failed.

"He’s so cute, Harry! I want to get him! I mean, Lala wants to get him. Isn’t that right?" Their daughter wasn’t listening. Harry smirked.

"You don’t have to lie, _Lewis."_

"Let’s name it Hendrix!"


	5. Chapter 5

Monty stared at Hendrix with his big yellow eyes bulging from their sockets, his silky fur standing on end as Lawana and Hendrix bolted inside, both grinning from ear to ear. Hendrix, thanks to Harry, was now wearing a sparkly pink collar with his new registration tag.

“No mum, he’s perfectly chill…” Louis was saying on the phone to his mum, convincing her that the children would be safe with Hendrix, “he’s a big softie. Pitty’s are seriously misunderstood creatures!” Louis was saying, when Harry, flicking the kettle on for a cup of tea turned around and snorted at Louis.

“What’s funny, curly?”

“You sounded like Hagrid just then… ‘Seriously misunderstood creatures’”.

“Okay Harry Pothead, whatever you say. What?! Yes _mother_ , I am listening. Oh, come off it. Come see for yourself. He’s a gentle giant, not an aggressive bone in him…eh Monty? See, the cat had his back up for a mo’ and now they’re rubbing noses and Monty’s all purring up in his face – hey, gently Lala, we don’t sit on Hendrix like he’s a horse and pull his ears-”

“Hiiii Jay,” Harry said over the top of Louis’ monologue, snatching the phone from his husband who glared and tried to grab the phone back but Harry towered over him and held a giant paw to his shoulder, keeping him back. Louis, giving up the fight, took Lawana’s hand and led her to the foyer to set up Hendrix’s little bed they’d bought for him, a cane basket with a paw print foam mattress inside and fleece blankets.

“Harry, hon, are you quite certain-”

“Hendrix is a dope, honestly. He wouldn’t hurt a fly. Dogs like Hendrix only get bad rep’s ‘cause bad people buy them and train them up to be that way. They’re not _bad_ dogs. It’s just a stereotype.”

“Okay, well, I trust your judgement. How are my grandbabies doing, then? Lala is such a character, I miss her and her ‘Nan-Nan, can I squeeze th’ pips owt o’ you?’” Jay chuckled alongside Harry, smiling proudly as he poured Louis and himself a cup and reached for the biscuit tin.

“Why don’t you, Dan and the kids come over for dinner tomorrow night? Might have a family do! I’ll ring mum, get her to bring Robin and Gemms, might invite the lads too…”

“We’d love to, hon. What’s the occasion?”

“Do I need an occasion to have my dear family round for dinner?” Harry spluttered, mock outraged, “…well, actually. There is something. Lou and I have some news to share, but…I’d like to tell everyone, you know, all at once, so… let’s say, tomorrow at seven? I’ll make a roast.”

“You’re adopting again, aren’t you? Harry, that’s wonderful…” Jay beamed – Harry could hear the beam in her voice, and could picture her blue eyes misting up with joy, “…the…the way you and Louis are with your kids… it makes me so proud, you know. I always knew you’d make the best Dad’s and those kids are so lucky to have you-” Jay was saying, rambling on and on and sniffing audibly into the phone and Harry just shook his head, smiling to himself quietly. Well, the cat was out of the bag, wasn’t it? Although, not entirely. Okay, so she knew they’d be more kids coming into the picture, but she didn’t know about the surrogacy. Harry would keep his lips sealed until tomorrow night, despite the sheer difficulty of it all for he was bursting at the seams, finding himself tempted to spill the beans to Jay.

“Listen, Jay, don’t say anything to the girls and Ernie. And don’t be ringing my mum and telling her either. I want it to be a surprise.”

“My lips are sealed. Tell me, how long do you have to wait this time? Which country? Boy or girl? How old?”

“You’ll find out in due course… I’m not saying anything else.”

“Meanie pants. Okay, fiiine… hey Harry… tell me, where’s my son? It’s much too quite.”

“Er, he’s…currently detained…” Harry said, walking into the foyer to find Louis lying on his stomach with one end of a leather dog lead looped around his neck, the other end attached to Hendrix’s pink collar, Lawana sat on Louis’ back and clutching the lead like a reign, “Go horseys, go faster!”

*****

Throughout the following days, Harry marvelled at how much of a big softie Hendrix was. Lawana wore herself out chasing the Pitbull round the house, allowing her to tug his ears and pull his cheeks, never once snarling at her or acting in any way aggressively. By mid-afternoon they were both lying on the rug in the lounge snoring together, Lawana clad in her pink tutu, strap on fairy wings and the flower crown Harry had made for her (he was wearing a matching one), her chubby little arm flung around his neck as they lay in the sunlight, fast asleep.

“He really is a dope,” Harry murmoured in his drunk slur of a tone as Louis came up beside him, having just got Franciso asleep, slipping his arm around Harry’s waist.

“He’s surprisingly good with her isn’t he? Even Monty doesn’t mind him,” Louis commented, casting an eye to the cat who was camped out lazily on the window seat, diminishing rays of sunlight falling upon his black silky fur.

“Monty doesn’t mind him? Monty adores him, Lou. At this rate, they’ll be like…inter-creature gay lovers…”

“Hazz, that’s gross. My dog and my cat are not gay for each other.”

“They can be if they choose to be.”

“They’re not.”

“Would it matter if they were?!”

“It’s not possible.”

“Shut up and set the table for me,” Harry demanded, turning on his heel and making for the kitchen. Slipping his apron back on, he opened the oven and turned the chicken wings and started stirring the home-made gravy. Louis, scowling, nevertheless followed Harry’s instruction and dutifully, albeit messily, set the table.

“Babe, you’re doing it all wrong. The knives and forks don’t go like that…”

“The knives and forks can go exactly how I want them to go, Harold. If you don’t like the way I set the table, do it yourself.”

“I’m cooking for seventeen people, Louis. Excuse me if I’m just a bit frazzled!” Harry grumbled when the voices of Niall, Liam and Zayn could be heard, clambering loudly on the porch and letting themselves inside. Niall, cackling at the two husbands bickering, breezed in with a box of beers clutched to his chest while Zayn popped an expensive wine in the fridge.

“Lou, I know you’re a disaster in the kitchen…” Liam began, seating himself down at the dining table and casting a sympathetic look at Harry, “but couldn’t you at least make yourself useful, like, I dunno… pour the drinks, set the table, fetch the salt and pepper…”

“I just did set the table in case you haven’t noticed!”

Liam stared pointedly at what was a sad attempt at setting the table and rose to his feet to correct the mess, aligning the plates, glasses, knives and forks.

“Hazza, anything I can help with mate?” Liam asked.

“Nah, nearly done here. Thanks anyway.”

“Innit’ precious?” Niall asked, darting into the dining room with a drowsy looking Lawana in his arms, Hendrix, yawning widely, following behind them, “a girl and her pup… very cute. What’d yer’ call him?”

“Hendrix,” Harry answered, opening up the oven tray and serving the roast dinner up as Zayn poured wine for the adults and Liam poured grape juice for the kids when Jay and Dan with their tribe arrived at the door.

“COME IN MUM, DOOR’S OPEN!” Louis yelled, turning his attention to Niall, “…did you wake my daughter up?”

“I just went ter see the dog and give ‘im a pat, she woke up ‘erself!”

“Nan-Nan!” Lawana squealed, wriggling out of Niall’s arms and running to Jay as she burst through the door, running into her Nana’s arms. “Let me squeeeeze th’ pips owt o’ you Nan-Nan!” Lawana shouted, squeezing her as she hugged and grunting with the effort of it as everyone laughed. Before long, it was a buzz of activity, people swarming everywhere, Louis’ younger sisters, now young women themselves, cooing at Hendrix as he sat there smugly, lapping up the attention.

“Louis, where’s Sisco? I wanna see my baby nephew…” Lottie requested, seating herself down between Louis and Niall at the dinner table as Anne, Robin and Gemma arrived, their voices murmouring outside.

“Knock knock,” Anne giggled, opening the door and walking in with Robin and Gemma, her eyes lighting up as she took everyone in, rushing over to hug everyone individually.

“Hiii mum,” Harry smiled, falling into her encompassing hug, still clad in an apron and oven mitts, the bright green mitts caught in her hair.

“I only just got him to sleep a while ago! I’ll wake him after dinner…” Louis was telling Lottie, as Anne let go of Harry and clasped a hand over his cheek, her blue eyes, very much the shape of Harry’s eyes yet identical to Gemma’s, stared into his own with that same Sailor Moon twinkly way.

“Proud of you baby,” she sniffed, leaning in to kiss his cheek.

“I know… proud of you too,” he answered, and a moment later, Lawana was running at them like a bull at a gate, crashing into their legs and turning to Anne, “Gamraaaaa, can I squeeze th’ pips owt o’ you?”

“Only if I can squeeze harder?” Anne grinned, bending down to hug Lawana, picking her up as she did so. “You’re getting so big!”

“I am big an’ stwong… beecawse I eats my spinach. Daddy said spinach make you stwong.”

“Spinach is disgusting,” Louis commented airily from his seat at the end of the dining table, sat there like the head of the house and looking very much like some kind of sugar daddy clad in a smoking jacket like the Heff, feet propped up on the table much to Zayn’s obvious disgust, casually sipping his fine wine.

“You mean to tell me you only pretended to like my spinach pie?” Harry asked, glowering at Louis. Liam sniggered into his plate as Harry served up everyone’s roast.

After everyone had finished dinner, Harry served up delicious crème brulee pudding for everyone. He watched as everyone talked on top of one another as they always did at get-togethers with a dopey smile on his face. This was his family, all of them, including the boys. They were essentially his brothers, having lived and shared close quarters with him since he was sixteen. They’d been his family on the road for all of those years. They were, and always would be, his family. Harry knew no matter what, they’d always be there for each other. It was comforting to know that without even pausing to think about it, they’d walk to hell for one another.

“Okay, so… so, if I could get everyone’s attention,” Harry called out over the laughter and scraping of spoons against bowls, “…I…um…we… what I mean is, we… Louis and I, that is, we have some news to share.”

Everyone fell quite. Harry looked to Jay who already had tears swimming in her eyes, biting down on her lower lip and trying not to break out into a huge grin.

“Lou? Gemms, could you…? Could you come here?” Harry asked. They both look surprised for a moment, seemingly both momentarily distracted by the heavenly crème brulee. The spoon was hanging in Louis’ mouth which parted and remained open. “Louis?” Harry prompted. Louis coughed and put his spoon down, joining Gemma at Harry’s side, who was now standing between his sister and his husband. Reaching for each of their hands, he squeezed tightly and swallowed his nerves, feeling the violent throbbing of his heart lodge itself in his throat.

“What we wanna tell you… is… we’re having another baby. Two babies, actually. Um. You see, what it is… Gemma offered to be Lou’s surrogate, like, Louis is gonna, you know, contribute his genes with Gemma and we’re gonna have a baby. So Gemma’s gonna carry our baby for us.”

There was a moment of reflective silence before the table erupted in cheers and suddenly everyone was rising from their chairs and swarming the three of them, hugging and ruffling their hair. Niall was jumping up and down like Tigger beside them before launching them into a group bear hug.

“So proud of you Gemms,” Anne cried, hugging her daughter, “you have no idea what a beautiful thing you are doing…”

“Wait a minute, didn’t you say two babies, Hazz?” Liam asked while Dan was hugging Harry and Louis, a look of dawning realisation on his face, “you’re not preggers already are ya Gemma? I mean, I know twins run in the Tomlinson family…”

“We haven’t done it yet,” she answered, earning a loud cackle from Niall.

“Sorry babe,” Liam snorted, “but I think Tommo bats for the other team,” he said with a crinkly eyed smile.

“You know what I mean,” she scowled, “we haven’t been to a clinic yet. And no, we’re not getting any IVF twins or anything like that either. I’m gonna carry Louis’ child and Harry’s getting another surrogate. That way they both get to contribute their genes. We thought it would be a nice way to expand their family.”

“So, basically, they both get to be a baby Daddy. Holy shit… well, have you got the second surrogate lined up yet?” Zayn asked.

“Not yet, we have to start looking…” Harry answered.

“Well, hurry up, time’s a-ticking!” Niall said, smacking Harry on the back, “in the meantime, I guess Tommo and Gemma are gonna ‘do the deed’ and get started?”

“If by ‘do the deed’ you mean we’re going to the clinic and I’m gonna have a wank in a secret little wank-room to some gay porn, then yes, you’d be right,” Louis sassed.

“Language Louis!”

“Lou!” Harry and Jay chimed at the same time.

“What?”

“There’s young ears looming close by!” Harry pointed out, reaching for Lawana whose face was smeared with chocolate sauce. He sat her on his lap. “Guess what, Lala? Soon you’re gonna have a new brother or sister. And soon after that, you’re getting another brother or sister.”

“Do’ wan’ a brwother. Boys ‘ave germs.”

“But Sisco is your brother and you love him, don’t you?”

“Nope. I only love Hendwix.”

 


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the late update! Enjoy!

Weeks pass by, a blur of appointments with Gemma and Louis being poked and prodded and having different bodily fluids tested for diseases. Finally, the day came. Harry jiggled his leg so hard that it rivaled a drug addict going through withdrawal. “Harry,” Gemma said. “Calm down.” His leg shook faster than before, Gemma was sure he was going fly out of his seat.

"Harry," Louis tried. Slowly raising his gaze to his husband, Louis smiled gently. Placing his hand on his knee, he began draw lazy patterns with his thumb. "Hey, it’s going to be okay. Breathe, darling." Gemma nodded in agreement. Then she began to breathe in slowly and released the breath out in the same slow fashion. Harry followed suit and his shaking leg calmed.

"I’m sorry. I’m just really nervous is all. What if something goes wrong?" Harry mumbles. His leg begins to shake again until Gemma and Louis talked him into calming down again with soothing words and gentle voices. Soon, Gemma was called by the doctor. She got up and turned to her brother and brother-in-law with a reassuring smile.

"Here goes nothing."

 

*** _Ten weeks later_ ***

Today was a rather warm day in England so Harry and Lawana had gone out to the backyard to tend to their garden that Harry insisted to have. (“We need a garden!” “No, the fuck we don’t!”) Tying his hair back into a bun, Lawana let out a giggle. “Daddy, you look funny w’th your hair! Buns are for girls!”

Harry ignored her comment. “Excuse me, Missy. But boys can have buns!” Lawana giggled again and began to take out the gardening tools, digging wherever. Happily, Harry helped her rip weeds and plant new seeds. Soon, they were covered in sweat and dirt. Louis came out with two glasses of water. Lawana messily gulped her down, leaving water stains on her cheeks. Hendrix wandered out the house and into the yard, scoping out where to dig his first hole. His paw lifted and he began to dig next to a Rose.

"Hendrix, no!" Harry scolded, running to scoop up the dog from doing more damage. "Bad puppy!" Hendrix licked Harry’s nose. "No, don’t give me kisses you’re in trouble!" Hendrix continued to lick Harry’s nose before moving to full on licking his face. Defeated, Harry turned towards his husband and daughter. "Why do they do this?" Louis chuckled, skipping down the steps to retrieve the animal.

"Say ‘because you love me, daddy!’ Say it!" Louis cooed picking up his paw and point it towards Harry. Louis kissed Hendrix on the head. The dog snuggled against Louis; Harry groaned. Just then the phone rang.

"Dada, your telephone is ringin’! Can I answer it?" Lawana asked. Louis gave her the go ahead. Fishing into his pocket, he handed it to her. “‘Lo? Hi Auntie Gems! I’m good. How’re you?" Gemma was calling? They hadn’t heard a peep from her since her very last appointment at the sperm bank. "Daddy and Dada are right here. K, hold on." Lawana gave Harry the phone and scampered back inside.

"Gemma?" Harry asked hesitantly. "What’s up?" Louis crowded around Harry. He pushed him away, but as usual Louis insisted.

"Are you and Louis sitting?"

"No. Why?"

"It worked."

Harry was stunned into silence. Wondering what happened, Louis grabbed the phone out of Harry’s hand. “What worked? What are you talking about?” Louis could be a right idiot sometimes.

"You’re a fool, Tomlinson. My egg and your sperm worked. I’m pregnant." Louis’ scream startled Hendrix as he struggled to get down.

"WHAT?" Louis’ screaming continued. "It did?? Oh, wait. I need to get your brother back to earth. Hold on." He put the phone down and began slapping Harry’s cheeks gently. "Babe. Baby. Sweetie. Come back." Harry’s attention slowly came back to normal. And then he began to cry. Wiping his tears away, Louis picked the phone back up and began speaking to Gemma again. She agreed to come over later that night and tell them everything. Hanging up, Louis cradled Harry’s face in hands, kissing every inch of skin he could reach.

"We’re going to have another baby," Harry whispered, tears still flowing. "Half a Tomlinson, half a Styles, but a baby regardless…." Together, they stood in the garden, crying silently and kissing and feeling very joyful and blessed. Harry didn’t even care that Hendrix was messing up the garden.

***

Later that evening, with Lawana and Francisco in bed, Gemma, Harry, and Louis were sitting in the living room, the stereo playing old school r&b softly. Hendrix was perched in Gemma’s lap, a smile on his face as she scratched behind his ears. Louis demanded she tell them everything. “I didn’t think of it, honestly,” Gemma began. “I just went home and went about life as usual, until I felt off one week. Thought I had a cold. Again, thought nothing of it. Then one day, I just felt extremely awful.” She went on to say that she thought had missed her period; Gemma had looked up pregnancy symptoms but didn’t believe it until she went to the doctor to get tested. “You know, home pregnancy tests aren’t always accurate. Anyway, I got the call about three days ago and they confirmed I’m pregnant!” She sipped her tea, happiness and the warmth of the tea bubbling in her chest.

"How far along are you?" Harry asked.

"Doctor said about eight weeks along."

Louis squealed. “Why’d you wait so long to tell us?” Gemma shrugged.

"I guess I wanted to digest the news for a few days before breaking it to you." Louis squealed again. He reached over to hug his sister-in-law.

"When are you gonna tell mum?" Harry asked when Louis said, "when are you gonna tell my mum?"

"When are you gonna tell the kids?" Gemma countered. Harry lets out a little ‘oh yeah.’

"Soon," Harry finally says. "Maybe when you tell mum and Jay." He smiled smugly.

Gemma scowled playfully at him. “I never did like you, you arse.”


	7. Chapter 7

*****

12 weeks later

 

Niall was on babysitting duty while Harry, Louis and Gemma waited anxiously in the waiting room of their local doctor’s clinic. Harry, who’d always been obsessed with babyhood, babies and pregnancy, hadn’t left Gemma’s side since she’d shared the happy news. Every chance he got he was clasping a palm to her stomach (already there were dozens of photos uploaded onto his Instagram depicting such a pose and of course the ever loyal Larry shippers were in a frenzy every time Harry uploaded a new picture), and whenever she felt a kick, Harry was at her feet, hand held against her steadily growing womb. From the moment Gemma had revealed it was a success, Harry and Louis had her move in that same night, adamant that she would live with them during the pregnancy and while she recovered. Harry wasn’t about to take chances. This was his baby Gemma was carrying and Gemma was his sister and he was going to provide the best possible care for them both.

“Babe, when do you think we should tell Li he’s godfather?” Harry asked, sat between Gemma and Louis in the waiting room. Niall, having been the first one there to witness them fall in love with Lawana, had been designated godfather to their little girl and Zayn had been given godfather title to Franciso, which meant Liam was going to be godfather to the new baby on the way, naturally.

“Why don’t we invite the boys round tonight? Tell Liam then,” Louis suggested.

“Sounds good,” Harry smiled, reaching over for Louis’ hand and Gemma’s hands, squeezing them tight. Anyone would think Harry was the pregnant one, anxiously chewing on his bottom lip and jiggling his leg up and down. Gemma on the other hand appeared relaxed and content, a cliché pregnancy glow radiating her features, cheeks rosy.

“You guys sure you wanna know Baby’s gender?” Gemma prompted. They’d had this discussion a dozen times with Harry and Louis changing their minds constantly, on the one hand thinking it would be nice if it was a surprise and on the other hand thinking it more logical to know in order to think about baby names and plan the nursery. In the end they’d gone with the latter choice.

“Yeah, we wanna know,” Harry affirmed, nodding.

“Yep, let us find out if we’re having a Harriet or a Harry Junior,” Louis smirked, earning a groan from Harry.

“We are not calling the baby after me.”

“Awww, but Harry is such a cute and cuddly Hazza Hazzy cupcake naaaame…” Louis teased.

“How would you like it if we called Baby Louise or Louis Junior, hmm?” Harry asked, watching as Louis screwed his face up at that. “Could call him or her Lou-Lou for short? Or Loubear Junior?”

“I think not.”

“Well, we have plenty of time to think of names.”

“Hmm. Gemma, just make double sure during this scan that you aren’t carrying twins. You know they run in the Tomlinson genes.”

“Imagine that!” Harry beamed, looking way too happy at the prospect and earning a sharp look from Louis.

“With your surrogate still in the pipelines, this one on the way and those other two menaces, I wouldn’t be grinning at the idea of having twins, okay curly?”

“Speaking about the plans for the other surrogate,” Gemma chimed in, turning around to face Louis, “what’s happening with that? Have you found one you like yet?”

“We’re still looking around. Haz was flipping through a book the clinic sent of surrogates, so we’re still going through that…”

“Actually, Lou, I found one I think I like…” Harry said, digging through his bag and looking for the folder, “I mean, we would still need to, like, talk to her, and probably meet her before going further but… here…have a look…” Harry breathed, slipping the open folder in Louis’ lap. Gemma leaned over Harry and lowered her neck to read the page Louis was reading. The page in the portfolio revealed woman of Native American heritage with shiny thick dark hair and a warm smile that reached her eyes. It said she was named Sequoia and was from the Cherokee tribe, her family reservation located in North Carolina. Her bio stated that she was a  huge music fan and loved genres from R&B to Pop and Rock with a soft spot for Michael Jackson (and really, that made her an instant winner in Harry’s book). The bio revealed that she worked part-time at an animal shelter and was studying full time to work towards becoming a vet. It was her own personal message, however, that had won Harry’s heart in the end after having browsed through hundreds of portfolios:

 _“Siyo, my name is Sequoia. You’ve read all about me in the bio there, but you may be wondering, why am I doing this? The answer is simple. I want to give love. I want to help my family on the reservation who are struggling financially, and this is a way, among some part-time jobs and temp work I do from time to time, to help support my family. I also want to be able to give a child to a couple, or even just a person, who wants to give their unconditional love to a baby that they are unable to carry for themselves. I don’t care if you’re a man and a woman, a single man, a single woman, two women or two men, I just want to do something for someone else that will change their lives. I’ve always wanted_ to _be able to make a difference in the world and it’s the voiceless ones I try and reach out to, through my resources may be limited… I do my best for struggling animals and children in need. There’s too many children in need. I want to be able to help you create a family, someone like you who cares, someone who wants to give a child a better start in life, someone who wants to try to make the world a better place and who knows that this goal starts with our children, because they are our future. They will be the ones who will shape the world in years to come, and some people were born to be parents, even if they aren’t physically able to do it themselves. I can’t change the world in a big way. I can’t heal the world, as the late Michael Jackson sang about in his song, “Heal the World – make it a better place, for me and for you and the entire human race” – I can’t heal the world, but I can make a difference in a small way. We can all do little things that become the big things. It’s the little things in people, that are most beautiful and most overlooked and in the same way, the little things we do for others end up changing the world. Imagine if everyone did something small every day to pay it forward? Wouldn’t the world be a much better place?”_

“Harry,” Louis said softly after having read it, looking to his husband who was nodding and smiling at him with glistening bluey-green eyes. Harry’s eyes were somewhat unusual like that, seeming to be both green and blue at the same time, the iris half of each colour. The quality of the light combined with his mood seemed to bring out one colour or another. Right now they appeared as an even blend of the two hues, merging as a turquoise shade and shining. “Harry, I think you’ve found your match,” Louis said, giving his husband a fond smile.

“You think? I think so too, Lou. I think she’s the one. I hope someone hasn’t already taken her…”

“Yep,” Gemma said, finishing the bio, “this is your girl, Haz. She’s basically a Native American female version of you, so.”

“Heyyy, what is that supposed to mean?”

“What Peroxide Blondie means to say, love, is you’re a dreamy idealist who wants an equal, fairer world, she’s a dreamy idealist who wants an equal, fairer world. She quoted Michael Jackson ‘Heal the World’ for God’s sake. This is a match made in Heaven. What are you waiting for?”

“I… yeah, you’re right. Let’s call the clinic when we get home and get them to get in touch with her then, yeah?” Harry asked over the top of Gemma saying something catty to Louis and Louis replying with a snarky, “…and I don’t care if you end up with disgusting greasy brunette roots with straw coloured dried ends, you are not dying your hair while you’re carrying my baby…”

“I wasn’t _going_ to! I’m not that dumb!”

“Is anyone listening to me?” Harry asked, pouting.

*****

 

“So this is the lovely aunt carrying the Tomlinson’s baby? What a pleasure to meet you all,” a doctor by the name of Kim Worthington said, smiling and gesturing for Gemma to lay down on the hospital bed.  

“Hi,” Harry smiled, placing a customary kiss to the doctor’s cheek. She giggled in response and Louis folded his arms over his chest, sighing in annoyance, “nice to meet you too,” he said in his slow, low tone. Harry’s eyes flickered to Louis and seemed to catch the exasperation. Flopping down on the chair, Harry reached out for Louis, wrapping his arms around his waist and dragging him to sit upon his lap, curling his arms around his tummy, fingers interlocked in place. Wordlessly, to convey a message to Louis, a secret message like Morse code that needed no words, Harry reached for Louis’ thigh and pinched it with his thumb and forefinger. ‘ _I love you’._ Louis smiled despite himself and lowered his hand to Harry’s thigh, mirroring the gesture.

Together they watched anxiously as Doctor Worthington placed ultrasound gel on Gemma’s belly in preparation.

“Please don’t be carrying twins, please don’t be carrying twins…” Louis chanted to himself, crossing his fingers together.

“Not keen for twins then?” Doctor Worthington smiled.

“The husband and I,” he began loudly, wrapping an arm around Harry and making a show of displaying his golden wedding band, “already have one rowdy five year old at home and a ten month old. Hubby is getting a surrogate for himself as well, so that’ll be four. Twins run in my family. Two of my sisters are twins and then my youngest brother and little sister are twins as well, so, yeah, I’m kind of hoping we aren’t going to be stuck with five kids under the age of five. I’m not ready to lose my last remaining shred of sanity,” Louis said lightly, raising his eyebrows up and down at the doctor.

Harry, meanwhile, couldn’t help but to glow a little at being on the receiving end of his husband’s possessiveness. It never failed to endear Harry. Even after all of these years, Louis still couldn’t keep his (unwarranted) jealousy in check.

“Ah, well that is fair enough. Well, the moment of truth awaits…” Doctor Worthington smiled, moving the medium scanning stick over her belly and soon enough blurry images of the baby started showing up on the monitor. Louis froze in Harry’s arm, observing the little Thumbelina sized baby, and Harry felt his heart stop for a second before stammering into an ecstatic rhythm.

“Gemma, you’re 14 weeks now and I can confirm you’re carrying a healthy baby boy. _One_ baby boy,” Doctor Worthington said, smiling at Louis who twisted in Harry’s lap and raised an arm into the air as if he’d just witnessed the Doncaster Rovers smash it, whooping loudly and curling his arms around Harry’s neck as they hugged. Harry laughed and hugged his husband back fiercely, pecking a kiss to his mouth before swooping down on Gemma and wrapping her into his arms.

“Thank you so much, Gem. Thank you, thank you, thank you…” Harry kept chanting, trying not to sob as the tears cascaded into her neck.

“Another baby boy…” Louis lamented, grinning at Harry when he released Gemma and pulled Louis into another bone-crushing hug, “you know, I can’t wait to tell Lala, she’s-”

“I thought you said you told her last night?” Gemma asked while Doctor Worthington wiped the gel off and pulled her shirt back down.

“Hmm? Miss Styles, you should really learn to open your ears. I said last night that we need to tell Lala, being the soon to be big sister and all.”

“Last time we breached the subject she said she didn’t even love Sisco and only loved Hendrix,” Harry recalled, smirking a little bit at Lawana’s sassy attitude. She definitely had picked that up from the Sassmeister from Doncaster himself, the one and only Louis Tomlinson.

“You know how fickle children are. We’ll talk to her tonight, yeah?” Louis asked Harry, as Gemma rose to her feet and moved to sit opposite Doctor Worthington’s desk, discussing dietary intake and what kinds of supplements to take.

“So I think we’ve covered everything for where you are in this trimester. Do any of you have any further questions?” Doctor Worthington asked.

“No? Harry?” Louis prompted. Harry shook his head, just eager to get husband, baby and sister home and already missing Lawana and Sisco.

“I think we’re all good, then. Thank you Doctor,” Louis said, slipping an arm to the small of Gemma’s back and holding onto Harry’s hand, leading them away.

“No worries. Now, be sure to check in with Ariella at the front desk to book in your next appointment.”

“Will do. Thanks Doctor,” Harry smiled, waving at her and turning, his pointy toed heels tripping over Louis’ Vans and sending him crashing into the reception area.

“Harry, watch where you’re going!” Louis berated, leaning down to pull Harry up who’d landed on the ground beside the reception desk.

“Watch where you’re walking!” Harry retorted, dusting himself up as he rose to his feet.

“You’re the one who wasn’t watching where he was walking!”

“Can you please not bicker at least until we’re in the car? You’re embarrassing me,” Gemma hissed, avoiding eye contact with the attractive dark haired receptionist who was gazing at Harry and Louis with an amused smile on her bright red lips.

“If you don’t like it, Miss Styles, go live somewhere else,” Louis sassed.

“Lou! Stop being a prat,” Harry said sternly.

“Now I’m being a prat? Oh, overwhelmed by compliments from my dear husband,” Louis hissed.

“Hi there, may I help you?” asked the pretty receptionist, and Louis noticed right away the way in which she was checking his husband out. Her eyes were black, the lashes the same hue, scanning Harry from head to toe.

“Ariella, is it?” Harry asked, shooting her a dimpled grin at her, “what a lovely name,” he complimented and Louis looked like he wanted to scream as he watched them smile at one another. Yes, it was clear his husband was hot, what with his low cut V-neck shirt carelessly exposing his swallows, the tight black jeans that clung to him shamelessly, scarf wrapped around his wayward curls, necklaces dangling against his nipples in the see-through fabric. Louis, however, looked like he wanted to write ‘mine’ on Harry’s forehead, folding his arms and shooting daggers with suddenly icy blue eyes at the receptionist.

“Thank you,” she said, leaning closer, the loose polka-dot blouse falling open, her ample cleavage popping out, the hint of a black lace bra exposed. Gemma watched in exasperation as Louis’ eyeballed Harry, following his line of vision, a look of outrage on his face when he noticed that Harry was openly staring at her breasts. “So, what can I help you with?” she smirked, speaking in a sultry tone that engaged Louis further. Louis coughed pointedly and Harry’s eyes slowly rose back to her face, the goofy look on his face still present.

“Ye- Yes,” he said, clearing his throat, “um…we…we need to book our next appointment for a second scan, for Gemma, my sister…” Harry said, slinging an arm around Gemma’s shoulders and dragging her forward.

*****

 

The moment they left the clinic, Harry realised he was in trouble. Louis stormed out ahead of him and made for the front seat of the car, slamming the door after he got in and leaving a perplexed Harry in his wake.

“What’s that all about?” Harry asked, genuinely upset and confused.

“Tell me you’re not that dense that you don’t know.”

“I don’t know? Whaaaat? Don’t look at me like that. I really don’t know what I did.”

“C’mon. You know how jealous and possessive Louis Tomlinson is. First of all, he didn’t like you planting a kiss on the-"

“That’s how I greet people! It doesn’t mean I _fancy_ them, oh my God, is that what his problem is?!”

“Harry, Harry, Harry,” Gemma said, sighing, “you were flirting up a storm with miss receptionist in there, in case you didn’t notice. I mean, you were staring at her tits for an embarrassing full minute. _‘Ariella, is it? What a lovely name…’_ ” Gemma mocked, and Harry groaned as the realisation set in.

“I didn’t mean to!”

“Harry.”

“Gemma.”

“Oh, come on. It’s not like I’m going to leave him for a hot receptionist. I’m married to him for Christ’s sake and we have a growing family together! Aren’t I allowed to, you know, harmlessly appreciate a thing of beauty when I see it? I mean, he checks out young lads all the time, I see it. I don’t go and sulk about it though!” Harry cried, leading Gemma to the car. They were now too close within Louis’ earshot so lowered their voices.

“You know he’s more insecure deep down about these things.”

“But Gemma-”

“Good luck, little brother,” she said solemnly, hopping into the back seat. Harry hesitantly opened the passenger seat opposite Louis, swallowing thickly as a tense silence engulfed them. Louis didn’t say a word as he backed out of the parking lot and drove in silence toward their London house. Harry stared at Louis worriedly, thinking that he must really be in deep shit now if Louis had seriously just gone fifteen minutes without speaking to him. A quite Louis was pretty much inconceivable.

“Look, I’m sorry,” Harry blurted out after Louis cut across a car that was meant to go before him at the intersection. Harry was unable to bear the silence any longer. “Will you talk to me now?”

“I don’t think you have any concept of the fact that I have feelings too!” Louis suddenly raged, his neck going red and the veins straining as he zoomed along the motorway with Gemma clutching her stomach and yelling for him to slow down.

“Louis, slow down,” Harry ordered in his slow lull of a voice, but it was deep and commanding and despite the anger seemingly surging through his veins, Louis obeyed with a huff.

“Nice to know you don’t even warrant what I’m saying with a response. I suppose my feelings don’t matter?”

“Rubbish. Just drive safely please and we can talk about this when we get home.”

“Fine.”

*****

 

“Hey Gemma,” Niall greeted her with a smile, carrying Sisco in a baby sling pouch around his chest. Gemma smiled a little wearily as she approached Niall, leaning down to stroke Sisco’s mop of dark hair. The baby boy beamed up at her, chubby arms flaying about. Niall looked behind Gemma, watching with a look of dawning realisation as the husband’s exited the car, both glaring.

“Ah. I see.”

“Yeah.”

“Hey Niall, thanks for looking after them,” Harry said with a slight break in his voice as if he was trying to hold it all together but was at the end of his rope.

“Not a worry. Lawana and Hendrix have just gone and worn themselves out, they’re both fast asleep on her bed,” Niall informed Harry as Louis stormed straight inside, slamming the door behind him. It was ridiculous and embarrassing and if anyone should be bursting into tears it should have been Gemma, all pregnant and hormonal. But it was Harry who started sobbing into his hands and a moment later Niall was squashing him into a hug, baby Sisco giggling between them and reaching for Harry.

“I…I-I’m sorry, I…I feel so stupid,” Harry said thickly, wiping his eyes on the cuff of his sleeve and sniffing back the build-up in his sinuses as he took Sisco from Niall, holding his son close to his chest and kissing his chubby cheek.

“It’s okay, mate. I know it’s a bit of a rollercoaster right now, right? You have a lot on your plate and we all know how Tommo gets sometimes. Don’t take it to heart,” Niall said, while Gemma made a beeline inside, following after Louis. It was too late for Harry to stop her. By the time he realised what she was doing, he could already see her yelling at Louis in the kitchen, gesturing toward Harry outside. Harry felt the heat tinge his cheeks. How embarrassing. How stupid and foolish and weak he looked, crying just because Louis was having one of his diva moments. But to be fair, Harry didn’t cope well with silent treatment.

Louis wandered outside onto the deck looking a little bit like a sheepish dog with his tail between his legs as he approached Harry.

“I’m sorry for getting mad at you,” he muttered, staring at his fingernails while Gemma stood on the porch with her hands on her hips, watching them like a hawk and clearly not satisfied until they made up again.

“S’okay…”

“It’s not, really,” Louis said quietly, looking up at Harry now, “I know I have…issues…with jealousy. I know it gets out of hand sometimes.”

“I know. It’s just… I’ve seen you check out young lad’s all the time if we’re shopping and stuff and I never say anything because it’s normal, you know? Like if I see a hot person in a movie, it’s not like I’m running away to Hollywood to be with them because that’s ridiculous and besides, you’re the only person I ever want to be with. You can, you know, think someone is fit without it being a slight against me, same as if I think someone is fit, you shouldn’t feel threatened…”

“Maybe I wish you would say something? Maybe I wish you would be jealous?”

“Why?”

“I dunno,” Louis shrugged, looking away with an uncharacteristic tinge of embarrassment in his own cheeks, “I guess it shows you care?”

“Babe, I’m not, like, _immune_ to jealousy. I just control my feelings. I put it into perspective. Besides, everyone knows you belong to me. I may not be all that jealous but I’m very, very possessive…” Harry said, grabbing Louis’ wrist and dragging his hand to his chest, placing the tips of his fingers against his ‘17Black’ tattoo just underneath his collarbone. Louis almost purred contently in response, eyes curving into happy half-moon crescents.

*****

 

Niall had opted to stay for dinner and they were expecting Liam at any moment. Harry hovered over the stone with his mittens on, hair done up in a mesh of braids and a partial bun with the help of Gemma (he’d braided her hair in return). A few moments later Liam breezed through the house and entered the kitchen with his phone out.

“Just texting Wayne, he said he’s on the way…”

“Okay. Sit down, Li. Dinner’s almost ready,” Harry said, serving up his homemade pasta dish and pouring everyone a glass of grapefruit juice.

“You know you’re not the pregnant one, right Bazza?” Liam grinned.

“I know, I’m just being polite, if Gem can’t drink, I think it’s fair that we-”

“Are you sure it’s not just you trying to have a phantom pregnancy, Mr Tomlinson?” Liam said, sharing a laugh with Louis at Harry’s expense, as usual. Some things never changed.

“Don’t even let him tell you otherwise Payno!” Louis shouted, “he took a copy of Gemma’s food plan from the doctors for himself!”

“Enough out of you,” Harry said, pushing Louis’ jaw with his fist playfully before serving up all the dinner, “now, we should really wait for Zayn but I’m kind of dying to tell you now. Liam James Payne, would you do Louis and I…” Harry began, flinging an arm around Louis’ shoulders, hand still clad with the oven mitt, “…the honours of being goddaddy to our BABY BOY?!”

“Well about bloody time!” Liam exclaimed, pretending to look mock outraged that he wasn’t asked sooner, “I always thought I should have been the first goddaddy, being Daddy Direction and all… but no, this one took the title from me…” Liam said, ruffling up Niall’s hair before pulling Harry into a hug.

“So that’s a yes?” Harry beamed.

“Of course it is, Haz.”

“Brilliant. Now, Lou, go see if Lala’s awake will you?”

Louis, who would usually mutter something under his breath or flat out refuse if in a lazy and indulgent mood and summon one of the boy’s to fetch the children rose from his chair and did as asked without complaint. It did not go unnoticed with Niall snorting and Liam not even trying to hide his look of sheer delight.

“Was Tommo in the dog house then?” Liam asked.

“Erm…”

“He had another one of his jealousy episodes,” Niall explained between mouthfuls of pasta, a rim of tomato paste already around his mouth.

“Ohhhh,” Liam said slowly, a cheeky smile lighting up his face as he looked at Harry mock accusingly, “yoooou whipped out some of that Styles bred shameless flirting, didn’t you? Come on, fess up…”

“The receptionist was fit, okay?”

“Tits or dick?” Liam enquired, now grinning at Harry.

“Tits,” Harry said quietly and carefully in case Louis and the kids were to walk in and hear. “I didn’t mean to. I just… I maybe accidentally flirted with her and you know how Lou gets…”

“And you got upset because he was upset and therefore he got upset because you were upset because of him being upset and he felt bad and now he’s doing anything to avoid being in the doghouse for making you upset, innit?” Liam asked.

“Something along those lines,” Harry drawled while Gemma and Niall cackled together in unison, having witnessed the whole sorry ordeal themselves.

“DADDYYYYYYY,” came Lawana’s voice, entering the room with Louis, she let go of his hand and crashed into Harry’s embrace. Louis carried Sisco to his highchair and fastened him in. “Daddyyyyy, miss you and Dadda too much when you gone...”

“I know, baby. We missed you too. But you had lots of fun with Hendrix and Nialler, didn’t you?”

“Mmmhmm. Niall pwlay Hide and Seek with me and we bouncy bounce on the ‘twamp and I ‘dwess up like ‘pwincess and Niall was fairy mother!”

“Did Nialler wear fairy wings and a tiara, darling?” Louis enquired, barking a laugh at Niall.

“I sure did!” he answered proudly, “I was your Irish fairy godmother, wasn’t I Lala?”

“Yup!”

“Okay, so, now that everyone’s here…” Harry began, before noticing Zayn’s empty seat, “well nearly everyone. Why is Zayn always late? That boy’s either sleeping or off in his own world spray-painting or drawing! Well we’ll just have to start without him,” Harry began, when Niall shot a sheepish look toward Liam who gave him a pointed look.

“What? I’m hungry…” Niall protested, frowning at Liam.

“When are you not hungry? You’re a living eating machine.”

“Okay, can we all please just shuuuush for a mo? Thank you!” Harry said, gripping the kitchen island’s table top and observing his family with a misty twinkle-eyed look. “We have something very important to tell Lawana. Lala, baby, your Dadda and I would like to share some exciting news with you.”

“What?” Lawana answered, seemingly not concerned, sat on Liam’s lap and gulping her grape fruit juice down in one go.

“Darling, pay attention, this is important,” Louis instructed. Lawana pouted and huffed before looking to Harry with an expectant expression.

“Hurry up, Daddy. Wanna eat.”

“That’s my goddaughter,” Niall beamed proudly.

“Okay, okay. Sorry. What I wanna tell you is that you’re gonna be a big sister again! Soon you’re going to have a new baby brother!” Harry said, beaming at her as if he was a child having caught Santa in the act of dispensing gifts under the Christmas tree. But soon Harry’s excited expression deflated when Lawana looked at him looking mightily unimpressed.

“Don’t want no silly ‘bwother, Daddy.”

“I thought you’d be happy?”

“Nope.”

“But why not? Your Dadda and me are very happy about it and you know, being a big sister comes will lots of responsibilities. You will have to help look after your new brother, just like with Sisco, because your brothers will look up to you, being their smarter and wiser big sister and all…”

“Don’t care. Only like Hendrix. Hendrix my ‘browther. Sisco and new ‘browther can go away.”

Harry’s wounded look seemed almost too much for Louis to bear. It was almost heart-breaking, the excitement Harry had been investing in sharing the news with Lawana crashing down around them.

“Lala, darling, why don’t you tuck into your din dins? Go sit with Liam. Daddy and I will be back in a minute,” Louis said, picking her up and placing her in the seat next to Liam. Lawana seemed on a mission to race Niall and see who could polish off their meal the fastest as Louis led Harry into the foyer.

“Babe, don’t let this worry you. She’ll come round. This is normal. Totally normal, for her to react this way…” Louis tried to comfort, reaching out for Harry’s hand tattooed with the cross and giving it a gentle squeeze.

“But what if she doesn’t come round, Lou? What if she ends up resenting the new baby?”

“She won’t. It’s normal for kids to worry that they’re being, you know, replaced. They start to feel jealous and worried and a little bit insecure. She loves being the apple of our eye, you know that. She’s just worried that with another baby on the scene, she will be forgotten or replaced. We’ll just have to talk to her about it, when the boys have gone home, perhaps when we tuck her into bed, yeah? Once she knows that this doesn’t change the way we feel about her, she’ll come round.”

“Yeah?” Harry asked, looking uncertain.

“Yeah. I promise. Besides, soon they’ll be a third brother or sister to contend with. She’ll have to get used to it eventually.”

“Yeah. You’re right,” Harry said, breathing a sigh of relief, “I just worry.”

“I know, love. That’s because you’re a wonderful parent and you need to stop feeling guilty. Those kids are well loved,” Louis smiled, stroking Harry’s cheek with one hand and leaning in to place a soft kiss on his mouth gently. Harry resisted the urge to drag him then and there into the cupboard under the stairs and kiss him deeply, kiss him everywhere, have his way with Louis before dinner went cold.

“You know, Boo, we could totally have a quickie in there,” Harry suggested, pointing to the cupboard. Louis raised his eyebrows.

“One minute in and Lawana would come knocking, I guarantee it. And Liam is a human security monitor. I don’t much like our chances getting off with him a few meters away,” Louis smirked, patting Harry’s cheek.

“Hey Lou,” Harry said, gripping his hands and swinging them from side to side, “can I at least give you a blowjob tonight?”

“I’ll think about it,” Louis teased, leading Harry back into the dining room.

*****

 

After explaining everything a dozen times over to Lawana and reassuring her that she was their number one princess and that nothing would ever change the way they felt about her, she finally came round to the idea of having a new baby brother. Much to Harry’s relief.

It was now the morning and it was to be her first day of school. Harry was beside himself with nerves and excitement and pride and fear. What if the other kids were mean to her? What if they teased her for having two Dad’s? What if they made fun of her for the fact that her Dad’s were the singers from One Direction? What if she fell off the playground and hurt herself? So many worries and concerns flew through Harry’s head as he prepared her lunchbox with a ham sandwich, a muesli bar, a banana (of course) and a small juice packet. In the lunchbox he placed a handwritten note: _“Hi Lala, have a good day at school. Work hard. Love, Daddy xx”._ Lawana was eating her porridge for breakfast when Louis came up behind Harry and read the note, scoffing in his husband’s ear.

“You are such a sap.”

“I’m a sap, and you love meeee,” Harry sang.

“Daddaaaa, did you ‘bwing my Miss Erika?” Lawana asked.

“Yes pumpkin, she’s in your backpack,” Louis answered.

“Go upstairs and brush your teeth once you’ve finished breakfast,” Harry instructed Lawana, placing her lunchbox in her bag and zipping it up. Once Lawana was finished with her porridge she scrambled upstairs to brush her teeth before coming back downstairs.

“Is my ‘dwress ‘pwetty, Daddy? Dadda pick it for me,” she said, twirling around on the spot. Harry smiled, gazing at their daughter. Louis had dressed her well, putting her in a velvet green dress with a cute white collar, white stockings with silver sparkly shoes complete with a bow on the end.

“You look beautiful, baby. Now c’mon, let’s get in the car and get going, eh? We don’t want you to be late for your first big day at big girl school…” Harry said, and together he and Louis took a hand each and led her to Harry’s Range Rover. Louis liked to call it his ‘Soccer Mum car’. Harry hopped in the front seat and before Louis could get in the passenger seat beside Harry, Lawana had already wormed her way in and was fastening up her seatbelt.

“Lawana, I am not sitting in the backseat like some child. You’re the child. You sit in the back.”

“Make me.”

“Is that a challenge? I’ll carry you and put you in the back seat myself if I have to!”

“Louis, get in the car!” Harry ordered, “We don’t wanna be late.”

Louis groaned but did as asked, begrudgingly putting himself in the backseat and frowning as Harry reversed out of the driveway and merged onto the main road. Flicking the radio on, Lawana and Harry were soon singing along together to the golden oldies station.

“Don’t blame it on the suuuunshine! Don’t blame it on the moooonlight!” Harry sang alongside the J5 classic with Lawana chiming in.

“Don’t ‘bwlame it on the goooood tiiiiimes, ‘’bwlame it on da boooogie!”

The two of them were off in their own world now, off in their own Harry-and-Lawana club, singing together and cackling, telling stories and exceedingly lame jokes. Harry, unfortunately, had taught Lawana the ‘art’ of knock-knock jokes. Louis groaned from the backseat.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I actually suck at updating. 
> 
> Follow me [here ](http://magical-butterflies.tumblr.com) and Lulu[ here](http://madam-gypsy.tumblr.com)! :)

The Tomlinsons pulled into the parking lot. “If you need me call me, no matter where you are; no matter how far!” Harry sang. “Take it away, Louis!” Louis groaned again, feeling shy. He still wasn’t confident that his voice was strong or good enough. The boys and fans had told Louis over the years that his voice was the best and yet he still had a hard time believing it. 

"Dada, siiiiiiing," Lawana requested. 

"Just call my name and I’ll be there in a hurry…" Louis sang hesitantly. Harry snuck a glance in the rearview mirror and winked at Louis. “‘Cause baby you don’t have to worry!" And together their voices flowed easily. Lawana clapped happily and cheered, kicking her feet in her seat. Louis’ cheeks flushed and he hid his face. Unbuckling her seatbelt, Lawana stepped out the car, wind blowing. 

"Pumpkin, wait for us!" Harry called. She stomped her little foot, pouting. Once they were out the car, Harry adjusted Lawana’s backpack. She grabbed both her fathers hands and together they walked to her classroom. When they were inside, they were met with other parents and kids. Louis saw one child burst into tears and cling to his mother. Other kids were sat at their desks or playing with toys. Lawana put her backpack on the back of her seat and darted towards the toys. 

"Lala, sweetie, are you going to be okay?" Harry asked. "Me and Dada can’t be here all day. If you want, we can stay for a while." Louis crouched down to her level. Lawana was building something unidentifiable with Legos. 

"Yeah, Dada, I’m sure. I have Miss Ewicka to keep me company if I sta’t to miss you," she said. Harry pulled out his phone and asked Lawana to smile. She gave a big grin. "Cheese!" Harry snapped away. Opening the Instagram app, he posted the picture, captioning it _‘Her first day of school! My little princess is growing up!!!’_ followed by several sad faced emojis. Slipping his phone into his jacket, Harry patted her hair. 

"Okay, pumpkin, if you’re sure. Dada and I will get going. We’ll see you soon," Harry said. Both men kissed her cheeks and she kissed her dads in return. A fierce lump formed in Harry’s throat; he grabbed Louis’ hand placing his hand in his. Louis gave a little squeeze. They left the building, a pathetic sob was ripped from Harry’s throat. 

"Are you crying, Harry?" Louis asked. Sniffing, Harry dismissed him. 

"No, it’s allergies." 

"Liar."

"You’d be crying too! I’m just more open about it." 

Louis couldn’t argue with that. Instead, he rolled his eyes and got in the car. 

The house was quiet. Gemma had gone up to spend a couple days in Holmes Chapel with Anne and Des; Jay and Dan had taken Francisco for the day. Hendrix had greeted them with a happy bark and sloppy kisses. “You know,” Harry said, placing his keys on the kitchen island, “this is the most quiet we’ve had since before we had kids.” Louis was quiet. “It’s real-” Harry was cut off when a hand flew to his mouth, silencing him. 

"Don’t say anything," Louis all but whispered. "Let us enjoy it." Harry slightly raised an eyebrow. Then a smirk slowly appeared. 

"I bet you won’t be keeping quiet in about twenty minutes," Harry mumbled against Louis’ hand. Louis gave a look of confusion. "You know, I’ve been wanting to fuck you for weeks, but between Gemma and the kids, I just haven’t had the time to do so." Louis’ breathing hitched; he brought his hand away from Harry’s mouth and he took the opportunity to bend down and breathe hotly against the shell of Louis’ ear. "Let me make you feel so good, baby. Can you do that?" Louis nodded. Harry bit Louis’ earlobe and chuckled. 

"Harry, don’t," Louis whined. Harry’s cock twitched. Pressing soft kisses to Louis’ neck, Harry kissed the spot right above the sensitive spot that made louis weak in the knees. "Harry." Mouthing at his skin, Louis pressed his backside against Harry causing him to hiss. "Fuck, can we move to the bedroom? I-I-the…" Harry began grinding his hips slowly.

"The what, love? The neighbors? They can’t get an eyeful in the kitchen, anyway." Louis groaned when Harry’s large hand made contact with his bulge. Louis finally gained enough strength to move away from the younger boy, panting. Grabbing Harry’s hand, he pulled him to their bedroom.

-

A blissful hour and a half later, Louis cracked his eye open. His muscles yelled at him as he stretched. A dull throb in his bum became made its presence known which made him smile. Harry huffed sleepily. “Babes, wake up. We gotta go soon.” Harry mumbled nonsensically, stirring from his slumber. 

"Why?" he all but whined. 

“‘Cause Lala’s first day of school is almost over.” Harry really started to wake up. Mewling loudly as he stretched, Harry planted his feet on the floor. He searched for his clothes. Once he found what he was looking for, he throughout it on hastily. Checking himself out in the mirror, he caught a glimpse of his neck which was littered with bite marks and purple bruises. 

"Lou, I can’t go out in public like this!" Harry cried. Louis scoffed as he pulled up his sweatpants. 

"If I remember correctly, you walked out with love bites on your neck and jaw when we were younger!" 

"Yes, but I tried to cover them!" 

"You did a rather shit job at it, actually." Harry ignored him and stuffed his feet into his boots. 

 

Fifteen minutes later, they arrived at Lawana’s school mixing in with the sea of parents waiting for the bell to ring. Harry tightened his scarf; Louis loosened it and ripped it off. Harry hissed at him to stop but Louis kept on keeping on until Harry gave in and tucked his scarf in his pocket. Louis smiled proudly. The bell rang and kids poured out the building. “Daddy! Dada! Daddyyyyyyy!!! Dadaaaaaaaa!!!” their little girl’s voice rang. She ran towards them, crashing into their legs. She wrapped her arms around them chanting their names. Louis picked Lawana up and smothered her with kisses. 

"Hey, princess! How was school?" Harry said ruffling her hair.

"Good! We pain’ed and we eated lunch! Angela said boogies are gross and Maria and Ana are twins! Susie said her brother is a doo-doo head! I told her it was a bad word, daddy." Harry laughed. "Oh, and then we played! Ms. Liv said we had to take a nap and Michael said naps are for babies!" Lawana continued to talk about her day as they strapped her in and on the drive home. And once they pulled into the driveway.


	9. Chapter 9

Gemma looked ready to pop any day – 30 weeks in, and she was hunching around the Tomlinson abode, ankles swollen, a constant craving for jarred pickles, and a constant request for romantic and sappy films. Her emotions were also a rollercoaster. Most nights she’d snuggle into her younger brother with her feet flung over his lap, eating out of an ice cream container piled up with chocolate sauce and quietly sobbing to herself whilst watching _Love Actually_. The siblings had a shared love for the film, so it was really only Louis grumbling.

“Why are you crying? It’s not even sad,” he’d remarked, earning a glare from Harry and Gemma. Seemingly, as punishment for his unthoughtful comment, _Titanic_ had been next on the list and this time both brother and sister were crying when Rose promised she’d never let go. And then, as icing on the cake, the duo agreed on _The Fault in our Stars_ , much to Louis’ displeasure, who’d recalled Niall asking him whether he’d watched it years ago in an interview for the promotion of their fourth album. Of course, by the time Gus had revealed that the recent scans had lit up like a Christmas tree, Harry and Gemma were dabbing their eyes with tissues again, and Harry noticed that out of the corner of his eyes blurred with tears that his dear sweet _strong_ husband who didn’t fall apart in front of others was sniffing quietly to himself and attempting to brush away a tear by pretending to scratch the skin just under his eye. But Harry knew better and smiled to himself.

“You two are such saps,” Louis said once the credits were rolling, earning a playful shove from Harry.

“Says the man who was just crying when Gus told Hazel he was dying!” Harry argued, smirking at his husband who was looking at him with outrage and reddened cheeks.

“I was not crying!”

“Yes you were!” Gemma grinned, pointing an accusatory finger at him, “you were also crying when Hazel read her eulogy to Gus!”

“I was…I had something in my eye…” he muttered weakly, giving in when they both continued to shoot him down with their doubtful and knowing expressions. “Fine! Fine! Let everyone know that I cried, but can you blame me? What kind of sheer manipulation is this? What kind of sadism is this?!” Louis spluttered.

“That would be thanks to a sadist named John Green,” Gemma supplied when suddenly the phone rang.

“Don’t get up love, I’ve got it,” Louis responded, moving over to the kitchen island to pick up the phone. Harry’s head shot up in his direction when Louis’ tone changed.

“Hi, you’re speaking with Louis – oh…hi! Yeah…yes, are you serious?” Louis asked, voice breaking and eyes widening for a moment before meeting Harry’s questioning gaze. Louis’ eyes curved into happy crescent moons and soon he was shooting Harry his bright sunny smile, his smile reserved for Harry, a smile that Harry could swear was bleeding sunlight. “Yeah, thanks, we’ll be in touch, bye now…” Louis said softly before hanging up and turning to Harry who slowly rose from the sofa, biting into his lower lip so hard it was reddened and beginning to throb.  

_Eight Weeks Earlier_

 

Harry felt the butterflies invade his stomach as he stepped out of the plane holding Louis’ hand. They were now on the soil of North Carolina and were about to meet Sequoia. Niall was staying in their house looking after Gemma, the kids and pets while they were away. Rain was pouring down from the grey skies above, splashing Harry’s face as he and Louis made their way through the airport’s exit and toward their waiting SUV.

“Breathe Haz,” Louis reminded his husband with a chuckle, curling his arm around Harry’s waist as they stood outside Sequoia’s apartment complex, the raindrops hitting their faces. Harry was just about to ring the doorbell when the door with a rusted hinges and fading blue paint squeaked opened and there stood a young woman with bright dark eyes and tresses of long ebony hair. She was wearing a turquoise beaded necklace with a silver bear dangling from its end, engraved with a symbol.

“Sequoia?” Harry asked.

“Harry? Louis?” she responded, nodding her head frantically when they nodded in response and a second later she had thrown herself at them and wrapped them into a bear hug.

“Come in, come in, get out of the rain!” she urged, beckoning them inside and leading them up the rickety staircase to her flat upstairs. The décor looked very much as if it was from the 70s and the wallpaper looked like some pea green bathroom tile design. “Cup of tea? Or coffee?” she asked, flicking the kettle on.

“Tea would be nice, thank you,” Harry smiled.

“Tea, thank you, love…” Louis smiled, moving to pull out a seat when Harry looped his arms around the smaller man’s waist and pulled him to sit on his lap, shooting Louis a cheeky smile.

Sequoia approached them a moment later, handing them a tea cup each and sat down opposite them at the table, the corners of her upper lip quirking as she observed them.

“…still reckon the fedora needs to go,” Louis was muttering.

“Don’t lie, you love it.”

And that’s where it began. They forgot the formalities and spent the morning getting to know one another. Harry and Louis told Sequoia about themselves and what it was like being members of such a prevailing super boy band, sharing with her what it was like in the early days, when they had no control at all under the Modest! regime.

“I’m so sorry you had to go through that – having to keep your relationship secret and keep who you are a secret… it must have been a difficult time. Especially considering you were only sixteen when it all started, Harry.”

“Yeah, in hindsight… I mean, at the time I knew it was rubbish, what they were making us do, who they were making us be. But in the beginning we were just so thrilled that a label this big was really signing us. We just went with it. But it started to get tiring, like, emotionally, spiritually exhausting, having to hide who you are. Having to live a lie. Lou had it worse though, and I’m proud of him for not giving up,” Harry said, squeezing Louis’ hand and giving him a soft smile. Louis smiled back and then looked away.

“How so? What did they do to you Louis?”

“Err; I basically had a contracted girlfriend whose father was working for an offshoot of the company, a connected corporation. In the beginning, it was like, ‘Just be seen going to Starbucks with her every now and again to get papped. It keeps questions away.’ So, like, I played their game and did what they wanted. But it started to get pretty ugly. They’d go on my Twitter account, write things from my account, pretending to me, saying things I’d never say. After the promotion of our fourth album, they wanted me to address ‘odd rumours’, hoping I’d say that Harry and me weren’t really in a relationship, despite what a lot of fans thought. I mean, we were keeping it secret, because of our management. But a lot of fans knew. They called us ‘Larry Stylinson’. I recall you saying, love, that the oddest rumour you’d heard was that we’d all died…” Louis remembered, reaching for Harry’s curls and twirling a stray one around his index finger, “…that was sufficient. I was asked again and I said, no. There was nothing I could think of. Oh, I knew what they wanted me to say. It had been going around since X Factor days, that me and H were together. It had been long rumoured that I was gay. But I didn’t address it, because these things weren’t rumours. They were true. So essentially, since I didn’t deny anything as I was supposed to, they go onto my Twitter and harassed some journalist who’d only said I was seen supporting the community, and used me as a mouthpiece for their homophobic ideologies. And so it was written ‘I am indeed straight’ and then it was promptly removed after the fans lost their shit, which was of course fair enough that they did. They were hurt and confused. And it was just a hard time because I couldn’t explain the truth without major backlash…” Louis said, stopping to take a deep shaky breath, allowing Sequoia to process all of this information while he proceeded to drink his tea.

Sequoia reached over and grabbed his hand that trembled under the dim light above and gave it a squeeze as the raindrops continued to thrash violently against the windows.

“I’m sorry they put you through that. What changed? When did you leave?”

“After our contract expired in 2016…we didn’t sign with them again, after that. All the boys agreed it was for the best. We had the support and the fan-base and we had become the kind of band we’d always wanted to be. We were finally being ourselves and writing the kinds of songs we wanted to write, making the kind of music we wanted to make. So we left and formed our own label – USP. We can thank Liam’s Dad for that one,” Louis smirked.

“And…is that around the time you were able to leave the fake relationship? With the girl?” Sequoia wondered.

“Yeah, exactly. Once the contract ended, so did our contracted relationship. Haz and me have been out in the open since 2016…”

“So, Sequoia, now that you know a bit about us,” Harry began, eyes dancing with mischief, “why don’t you tell us all about you?”

Sequoia spoke a bit about her family life and what it had been like growing up on the reservation, the pain and heartache of watching alcoholism destroy her family, the root cause of all their problems being poverty and illness and the shared grief from generations of suffering and oppression. But she recalled happy memories, talking about the conversations her sister and she had when they’d go camping on top of the great mountain ranges surrounding their reservation, how they’d pitch a tent under the Milky Way and talk about their dreams.

“I was going to become a famous pianist,” Sequoia laughed shyly, looking down at the table, “and Chenoa wanted to be a ballet dancer.”

“Do you play?” Louis asked.

“Yeah, since I was five? My Grandma taught me. They’ve kept the piano in the family; it was handed down to me.”

“You ought to play us something, love, when we get you into the Tomlinson abode,” Louis said.

“‘We’? You’re…You’re taking me back to London?”

“Of course,” Harry said automatically, face falling somewhat when he considered the possibly that she wasn’t able to just up and leave North Carolina. “That is…if you want to. We’re paying for everything, of course. We just thought, like, after we get the results from the clinic, we’ll send a flight for you and we’ll meet you at Heathrow.”

“That’s if the results are positive. I mean, there’s always a chance it doesn’t take. I want it to work for you guys, I really want to help this happen for you.”

“Even if it doesn’t work, we’ll give it a few more tries and not give up,” Harry smiled.

“What time is this sperm extraction taking place? One-thirty didn’t you say Cupcake?”

Harry checked his watch. It was already half twelve.

“You’re gonna have fun in the secret little wank room,” Louis teased, squeezing Harry’s reddening cheeks.

 

*****

 

“Now, Mr Tomlinson, if you just fill out these forms and then Leanne will take you into a private room,” the receptionist said as Harry nodded and took the pen into his clammy hand, heart thundering behind his ribcage.

“As long as Leanne isn’t planning on doing any funny business with you in there,” Louis whispered in Harry’s ear, earning a sharp look from the receptionist. “You know, on second thought, I’m sure I could assist,” he added, wiggling his eyebrows up and down and reaching round to give Harry’s arse a light slap.

“Clients only, I’m afraid,” she said frostily, when a nurse approached, presumably Leanne, a young woman with a shock of blonde frizzy hair pulled back into a ponytail.

“Harry Tomlinson?” she asked, scanning her clipboard and looking up at Harry.

“Huh? Y-Yep, that’s me! Hiii!” he beamed.

“Okay love, me and Sequoia will just be over there in the waiting room. Don’t be nervous. Just…you know…” Louis said, leaning up on his tip toes and pulled at Harry’s shoulder to make him hunch down a bit so that Louis could reach his ear, “…just think about how I’m gonna get you to sink to your knees and beg me to let you suck me off with that sinful mouth of yours…” Louis added in a soft whisper, causing Harry’s breath to hitch. “Now scram! I’ll be waiting…and timing you,” he said cheekily.

“Dooon’t! You’ll cause me to get stage fright,” Harry whined.

“When have you ever gotten stage fright?” Louis scoffed, “and besides, ‘stage fright?’ – are you mental? Nobody’s gonna be watching you. What, do you think they’ve got secret cameras installed in there love?”

“I meant…what I meant to say was I’ll get performance anxiety if I think of you sitting there timing me…”

“I’m only messing around with you.”

“Somehow I’m inclined not to believe that,” Harry grumbled, before rolling his eyes and kissing Louis’ cheek before following Leanne who led him to the ‘secret little wank room’ as Louis would call it.

“This is a sterile collection jar. You’ll find aids for stimulation via the magazines and DVD selection. Just slip the jar through this slot here when you’re done and it will travel to our clinical testing lab,” Leanne explained.

“Okay…t-thank you,” Harry answered, watching until she left and locked the door behind her before pacing up and down and eyeing up the porn magazines and videos pilled against the large flat screen television a little warily. Harry crouched down before the television and browsed through the DVD selection. Harry eyed up the titles. ‘ _Hot! Wet! Tight! Pink! Fuck Me, I’m Legal!’, ‘Sloppy Dogs Presents: Fuck Me, I’m a Bad Girl!’._ Harry looked for something a little more familiar, finding other titles, _‘Fuck Me, Sugar Daddy, I’m a Bad Boy!’_ and _‘Eat Me Out’._ Harry swallowed thickly and picked the sugar Daddy one, popping the DVD in and hooking the headphones to the system before sitting back on the lazy boy armchair with the sterile jar wedged between the side of the armchair and his hip. Harry felt the anticipation rising in his chest. He hadn’t gotten himself off in a while – he had Louis for that. Both the husbands had healthy, no savage, sexual appetites, eyeing each other up like the first slab of meat they’d seen after weeks of being stranded on an island. Before long the typical low moans and exaggerated whimpers synonymous with porn began sounding through Harry’s ears as he observed a young man and another man who was slightly older conversing on a sofa. Both men were attractive, the older man looking a bit more distinguished, a bit like George Clooney. The younger man was more like the late River Phoenix, Harry thought, biting his lower lip as he watched the men inch closer into a soft kiss that moved into a sloppy and dirty make out session, tongues coiling together. Harry began to feel a little hot around the collar. Things were escalating quickly. It wasn’t long before the younger man was on his knees, sucking the other man off who was groaning filthily in Harry’s ears and suddenly all Harry could think about was what he’d like to do to Louis later, imagining his husband tied up by ropes against the bed frame, at Harry’s mercy. The images in his brain changed. He imagined himself tied up, imagined the burn of the rope scratching against his wrists as he slipped between Louis’ lips. Harry saw himself being smacked around, envisioning Louis spank him and bruise him. Harry moaned, rubbing the bulging centre of his tight jeans and struggling to loosen them to grab hold of himself, stroking slowly and soon desperately, feeling the sweat gather along his upper lip, beads of sweat dotting his forehead, dampening his hairline…

 

*****

 

“Twenty minutes and…ten seconds…” Louis smirked, when Harry exited looking flustered and a little wrecked. Harry, in a familiar gesture, ran a hand through his long curls, something Louis knew as a sign of tension. Harry was still breathing heavily when they came closer and his eyes had a wild look about them, the pupils blown. “I myself was about half an hour. Couldn’t get into it right away, you know. Bit weird, isn’t it, getting off when you know all the nurses and the staff know you’re in there wanking.”

“Lou, can we just get back to the hotel now?” Harry asked quietly in his slow drawl. Louis seemed to take in his flushed cheeks and bright eyes with blown pupils with delight, a slow smirk quirking his mouth.

“What’s the rush, babe? Thought we might do a bit of shopping, check out the sights…” he teased.

Harry ran a hand through his wayward curls again, taking another shaky breath and hooked an arm around Louis’ shoulders, dragging him closer and pressing his mouth to the shell of his ear, whispering huskily, “…no. Need you now. I want… I want you to tie me up and fuck me,” Harry revealed, earning a sudden quietness from his husband who just looked at him and nodded slowly, looking a little gobsmacked and similarity flushed now, seeming to shiver against Harry.

“I…I’m sure that can be arranged,” he answered, standing back now as Harry went to the reception desk and signed the final forms before returning to Louis and taking his hand. The broken infinity rope etched onto Louis’ wrist aligned with the anchor inked onto Harry’s, as Louis fingers slipped between the spaces in Harry’s and they met Sequoia in the waiting room, leading her out of the clinic and making for the car. Harry, anxious and flustered, discreetly adjusted himself as Louis drove back to Sequoia’s apartment complex to drop her off.

“There you are, love. We’ll call you later, yeah?” Louis said, leaning in to kiss her cheek.

“That would be lovely, bye for now!” she answered, hugging and kissing them back before turning to leave and waving goodbye. Louis tooted the horn before turning around and zooming along the main street before pulling into the hotel and leading a flustered Harry through the foyer and into their suite.

“Lou…Lou… we’re gonna need ropes. I didn’t, like, pack any…” Harry mentioned once they’d hurried into the lift.

 

*****

 

“Haz… it worked. Results came back positive, babe. She’s preggers!” Louis shouted as Harry smacked into him and lifted him into an embrace. Louis’ slip-on slippers fell from his feet as his legs wrapped around Harry, hugging him back tightly. Gemma was at their side a moment later, merging into the hug as Harry cried and laughed.

“I was so worried it wasn’t gonna take, oh my God…Louis…it worked…”

“Yeah it did, Haz! Should I invite the lads over tomorrow night? Share the good news?” Louis asked, whipping out his phone and getting ready to send a group message to the boys.

“Yeah, course. Invite Jay and Dan and the kids as well. And mum and Des... I’ll call dad later… need to catch up with him…” Harry said, overwhelmed and feeling slightly dizzy. Gemma seemed to notice and led him back to the sofa, sitting down beside him and throwing the fluffy mink throw over their laps while Louis sent a group invite out.

“Any name ideas yet guys?” Gemma asked, placing her hands over her ever-growing bump. “With me about to pop before long with this one and another on the way, you might want to start thinking of names?”

“I feel like we should get Lala to help contribute name ideas,” Harry suggested.

“Yeah, maybe tomorrow we can start a list of names we like and settle on something?” Louis added.

“Sounds good,” Harry said through a loud yawn and a stretch.

“Louis, I think it’s time you took your husband to bed.”

“I think it’s time you took yourself and my baby that you’re carrying to bed as well. You need to get plenty of beauty sleep Miss Styles,” Louis retorted.

“ _Our_ baby,” Harry corrected.

“Our baby,” Louis echoed, smiling softly.

“Shit, is it seriously already nearly one?” Gemma asked, rising to her feet and making way for the staircase to bed. “I think I will hit the sack, night boys.”

“Night,” they called out in unison after her, before heading upstairs after her a few moments later, heading into the bedroom suite to prepare for bed by haphazardly attempting to make the bed. Harry always made the bed perfectly in the mornings but Louis could always be counted on to mess it up by allowing the kids to come in and roll around in there with Hendrix. Harry kicked off his jeans and pulled his shirt off, remaining only in his briefs. Louis likewise stripped to his briefs and followed Harry into the bathroom, both hovering over the sink as they brushed their teeth. Louis found Harry’s expression in the mirror and though his mouth was filled with the white foam of the toothpaste, he shot his husband a cheesy toothy smile which caused the toothpaste to slip along his chin. Harry spat it out and wiped his chin before throwing some mouth wash back.

“C’mon Boo, brush faster…wanna get in your pants, you know,” he smirked, slapping Louis’ arse playfully. Louis jumped and spat the toothpaste out, following his husband into the bedroom. Harry was already laying mock seductively on the bed with his hip jutted out, patting the spot beside him.

Louis crawled over to Harry and fell into his embrace, falling into lazy and slow kisses. Harry moved to roll on top of Louis, gently kissing along the slope of his golden neck and biting into the flesh while grinding into Louis’ crotch, soon thrusting against each other desperately. The rain outside began to pick up, hitting the windows furiously. Their movements slowed as a clap of thunder sounded outside and a flash of purple lightning blasted across the skies and Harry was kissing Louis gently and lazily and fading away before Louis’ eyes, slipping away and slumping against Louis whose heart seemed to hammer against Harry’s hand that was pressed against his chest. The hand had gone slack. Harry’s chest rose and fell softly against Louis who looked down at him, eyelashes fluttering as realisation dawned.

“Harry? Harry, babe?” Louis said quietly, gently prodding his sleeping husband. Louis just shook his head and sighed, smiling softly and curling up against Harry, throwing the covers over them and slipping his head against his husband’s chest, listening to the beating of his heart. “Maybe tomorrow then, love? It’s been a long day hasn’t it? Love you Haz…” he murmoured, drawing random patterns along Harry’s bicep, tracing the shape of where he knew the heart tattoo was etched.  Louis lay back and watched the streak of violet lightning crackle against the heavens and felt as Harry, fast asleep, tightened his grip around Louis’ waist and mumoured sleepily and unconsciously against his neck.

“Mmhmmmm lub you too Boo.”

Harry awoke the next morning to the sound of the rain gently pouring and the warmth of Louis tucked under his arm, curled into his side and breathing softly against him. Cracking an eye open, Harry reached for his phone to check the time. It was quarter to seven. Harry yawned and thought he’d have to get up soon to help get Lawana ready for school when he realised that it was Sunday today. Grinning dopily to himself, Harry slumped his head back down against the pillows and fell back asleep instantly to the lullaby of raindrops against rooftops and windowpanes. Throughout the morning he woke intermittently, waking again at nine and Louis woke with him this time and the thunder and lightning from last night had returned with furious rumbles through the sky.

“Still early, Boo. Sleep in some more with me?” Harry mumbled, snuggling closer into Louis.

“Lala and Sisco?”

“She’s sleeping, we’d know if she was awake,” Harry chuckled. “Stay here, I’ll go check on Sisco,” Harry said, leaning down to kiss Louis’ shoulder before rising to his feet and wandering along the hallway and into Francisco’s room. Harry was surprised to find Gemma glad in a wholly red dressing grown sat in the chair beside the crib, feeding him a milk formula which he gurgled back hungrily.

“Gem, what are you doing awake? I didn’t hear anything on the baby monitor…I would have got him…” Harry frowned, coming closer.

“Go back to bed, get some more sleep, you’ve been shattered these past few days. I’ve got it. I’m his aunt; I’m here to help… go sleep in for a while.”

“A-Are you s-sure?” Harry asked through a wide yawn.

“Yes you dork, its fine.”

“Where’s Lala?”

“She’s downstairs drawing a picture for Zayn.”

“Oh no, I hope she didn’t wake you up. She usually jumps onto our bed and wakes us up at the break of dawn.”

“Nah, I woke up quite early. Baby was kicking and I couldn’t get comfy.”

“Baby was kicking?! You should have woke me so I could feel!”

“Harry,” Gemma said, giving him a quizzical look, “you’ve felt her kicking like a dozen times. I’m not about to barge into your room either unannounced. Never know what I might walk in on. Could scar me for life.”

“I may be married to an insatiable beast but neither of us have the energy for all night sex marathons that last into the mornings these days so you won’t find us-”

“Lies, lies, lies. Your husband told me you have a thing for morning sex. I distinctly remember telling him to shut his mouth before I cut his tongue out when he was going on about it,” Gemma retorted.

“Well, how about next time she’s kicking, you text me and I’ll come to you!” Harry sleepily suggested, yawning again and stretching.

“Why do I even reveal that the baby kicks at all? I should never have told you. You’re obsessed. Go back to bed.”

“Yes mum,” Harry answered sarcastically, before leaning down to place a kiss on Francisco’s forehead and reaching out to ruffle Gemma’s hair, he turned on his heel and returned to the bedroom suite. Louis was fast asleep again, seemingly lulled into his dreams by the patter of melodic rain and the exhaustive pace of life and the speed at which their lives were changing and growing. Harry shot Louis his most secretly ridiculous fond look – granted the shippers had seen many a fond face and ‘heart eyes’, this was like that, but slightly different, more secret and reserved for not even Louis’ eyes only. It was the softest look from one observing their love sleep, watching them when they were most vulnerable and beautiful. Harry quietly slipped into bed, finding the spot he’d since vacated to still be warm, and curled into Louis’, pressing his nose into his hair and inhaling the scent as his eyes fell shut and he joined him, falling into his halcyon dreams.

 

*****

 

When Harry woke, the sunlight was bleeding through the bedroom and the grey clouds had parted and it was no longer hissing in rain.

“Morning Haz,” Louis said, looking so soft as he stared at Harry.

“What’s the time?”

“Just after eleven…” Louis smiled, raising his eyebrows at Harry knowingly. With Francisco and Lawana to entertain and feed, as well as the animals, it wasn’t all that often that they got to sleep in and spend a lazy Sunday morning in bed.

“We should get up,” Harry said, stretching and moving to get up, when he realised something hard and throbbing was pressed against his side. Harry smirked, reaching down to grip Louis’ hip.

“Something you’d like me to help you with Loubear?”

“Nah, I’ll just take a shower. Lala’ll be barging in here any moment if we don’t show our faces.”

“Shit, I totally fell asleep on you last night!” Harry remembered, groaning and flushing. “Let me make it up to you, babe. We can be quick…”

“Later. Let’s wear the kids out some until they get shattered and crash, then we’ll have a few hours to ourselves…” Louis said suggestively, kissing Harry’s neck.

“Okaaaay, fiiiine. Go shower, I’ll see you downstairs in a bit. I’ll make pancakes for breakfast yeah?”

“Sounds divine,” Louis answered, rolling over Harry who gave his arse a smack, squeezing the meaty flesh, eyes pinned to the curvy luscious backside of his husband, staring at it with appreciation as he sauntered into the bathroom.

“Stop staring at my assets,” Louis said.

“Why should I deny myself from appreciating such sexy assets?” Harry questioned.

“Later. Get your head out of the gutter for now and go tend to the domestic affairs of the household.”

“You can talk, with your big fat boner,” Harry sassed. “Head in the gutter, oh, the irony,” he added under his breath, pulling some sweatpants up and throwing a shirt on, Harry hurried downstairs and tried not to think about his husband getting off in the shower as he headed into the kitchen and found Lawana at the table drawing.

“Moooorning Daddy,” she said, looking up momentarily at Harry who was slipping on his rather risqué green and turquoise retro pinup apron that Liam had bought him as a joke.

“Morning baby, what are you drawing?” Harry asked, starting on the pancakes.

“Am doing you and Dada and Niall and Zayn and Liam singing and all the fans…” she said, lifting the picture up and showing Harry who observed five stick figures on a stage with background scribbles in every colour of the rainbow to indicate changing lights and colours. The stick figure with the mop of curly hair was clearly Harry and he figured the one with the two blue dots for eyes and a scribble of brown hair was Louis, while the one with a shock of yellow hair and blue eyes holding a long rectangular thing that must have meant to be a guitar must have been Niall. The one with the darker dots for eyes and hair and a mesh of scribbles on the arms to allude to tattoos was clearly Zayn.

“That’s great, honey. I love how you’ve captured all the fans emotions. They look so happy,” he commented, smirking at the sheer ecstatic grins she’d given all the surrounding fans. Their smiles took up the majority of their faces in some cases and some of the stick figures representing fans Lawana had even depicted as crying with joy. Quite accurate, Harry thought.

“Giving this to Zayn when I’m all done,” she said.

“I’m sure he’ll love it. Now, Lala, pancakes?”

“Do I get two breakfasts, Daddy?”

“What did you have before?”

“Aunt Gem give me Weetabix for breakfast.”

“Oh. Well, you can have a second breakfast if you like. My pancakes are practically magic, why would you turn down pancakes made by Harry Tomlinson himself, hmm?”

“We should save some for Niall,” Lawana suggested thoughtfully a moment later, earning a questioning look from Harry. “He won’t forgive me if he knows I had your pancakes and didn’t save him none…”

“‘Didn’t save him any’ is how you say it, baby. But…I mean…in that case, you can ring uncle Nialler if you want and invite him over for pancakes.”

“Can I?! Yaaaay. Gimmie the phone,” she said and then giggled hysterically as she yanked the phone. “Niall! Daddy’s making pancakes for second breakfast and said you can come over! Okay! See you soon! BYE!” Lawana was grinning from ear to ear as she put the phone back and resumed colouring her picture in.

“So I take it Niall didn’t decline?”

“What’s ‘decline’ mean, Daddy?”

“It’s another way to reject an invitation or to say no. So if, like, someone said, ‘Do you wanna come to my party tomorrow?’ and if you didn’t wanna go, you could say, ‘I have to decline your offer,” Harry was explaining as Louis strolled into the kitchen, smiling fondly at his husband.

“You could have been a teacher in another life, Mr.”

“Well, excuse me for encouraging youthful curiosity! Lala’s already doing so well in school. She’s already a smart cookie without my doing anything…”

“Rubbish, don’t discredit yourself. At least half of her smarts is thanks to the ton of books on child development you have, you freak. That plus you correct her words and get her to read to you…it’s quite admirable. You teach her to be a genius and I’ll teach her to be a footy star, deal? And we’ll be like two obnoxious stage parents who mould their kids after themselves and give them no choices in life, mwahahaha,” Louis cackled, fingers brushing together in a Mr Burns gesture.

“Dadaaaaaa, Niall is coming over for pancakes!”

“Is he, then? Well, I better put my best dress on, hadn’t I?” Louis joked, leaning down and gasping at what she was drawing. “Is this us?! And the fans?! Oh they’d love this, H; you should Instagram this for the fans!” Louis suggested.

“I was gonna! Just a bit preoccupied at the moment! Lou, why don’t you do it for me?” Harry asked, hovering over the stove. Louis came up behind him and reached into his pocket for his phone, breathing intimately against his neck, their eyes meeting in a long and searching look before Louis smirked at him, eyebrows rising up and down suggestively. ‘Later’ he seemed to mouth. Harry grinned and nodded.

 

*****

 

Niall and Lawana had gobbled up the majority of pancakes smothered in maple syrup and whipped cream with strawberries, leaving one each for Harry and Louis to eat. They were sat on the breakfast bench stools eating their pancakes and drinking tea while Niall, Lawana and Gemma were sat in the lounge watching _Toy Story_.

“Hey Nigel,” Louis called out to Niall whose eyes were glued to the screen, watching as Sid blew up toys in his back yard.

“Mhmm, what?”

“Did you and Lala wanna take Hendrix for a walk maybe?” Louis asked.

“Yeah, sure. Once the movie’s finished, eh Lawana? I do like me some Toy Story…”

“Not trying to wear our lovely little daughter out now are you?” Harry asked smugly.

“Maybe.”

Harry and Louis spent the afternoon lounged out on the sofa watching Grease while Gemma napped and Niall and Lawana took Hendrix for a walk down to the park, returning soon after Grease was finished and the credits were rolling. After getting Harry to play Barbie dolls with her, Lawana disappeared into her room and all was quiet, prompting Harry and Louis to think she might have crashed.

“I’ll go check on her,” Harry said, pulling himself off the sofa and making his way upstairs and into her room, hoping to find her sprawled out somewhere out like a light, only to find that she was sat in front of her dressing table mirror painting her face in make-up. Harry couldn’t help it. He burst into laughter. She looked like a clown with bright scarlet lips and blooming rosy cheeks and purple eye-shadow all the way up to her eyebrows.

“Where’d you get all this make-up from?” Harry asked, slipping to his knees beside her and looking at her face in the mirror.

“Gem gave me some of her make-up, Daddy. In this make-up bag!” she said, shoving the lilac bag under his nose.

“Well, how generous of auntie Gemma…” Harry commented, unzipping the bag and finding rather expensive brands of perfume in there and various shades of lipsticks which spiked his interest. “Babe, are you sure aunt Gemma said you can have this?”

“Yes! Ask her yourself if you want!”

“I believe you, sweetie. I was just checking. I think…like, if I was gonna give you any tips here, I think less is probably more, you know what I mean? A little bit of lipstick can go a long way! Not that you really should have all this fancy make-up. I don’t think your teachers would like you wearing it either…”

“Why not Daddy? I feel pretty wearing it.”

“You’re beautiful and you don’t need it. You can wear it at home, if you want to when you’re playing dress-up, it’s fine here… just not at school. You have to listen to school rules, you know that baby.”

“Okay Daddy…” Lawana said, opening her closet door and emerging with her strap on fairy wings. Slipping the pink wings on, Lawana next rummaged through the make-up bag and pulled out a lipstick shade named ‘Tangerine Flame’ and handed it to Harry. “Daddy, you put this one on. This colour will look ‘pwetty on you!”


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm really fucking bad at updating....

Harry’s eyes flickered to the small gold tube that Lawana was holding, the bright orange substance hurting his eyes. “This color? Isn’t a bit bright for me?” Harry asked. Sure, he had a couple of tubes of lipstick in the bathroom drawer. But they were pinks and reds. Not this tangerine color. Lawana nodded excitedly. Trotting over to Harry, he puckered his lips and Lawana went to town, applying the lipstick onto his lips and even his cheeks. 

"There, daddy! You look pwetty like me!" Lawana said, thrusting a compact mirror into Harry’s face. Harry almost laughed. He almost mirrored Lawana’s painted lips, lipstick everywhere but his lips. 

"Thank you, honey," Harry praised. He was admiring his new face paint, kinda loving the color, when her bedroom door opened, revealing Louis and Francisco. Whipping around, Harry blinked at Louis, his pretty green eyes, bright and sparkling. Louis took one look at his husband and his shoulders began to shake with short giggles. Snorts racked his body. 

"Harry, you look ridiculous!" 

"Daddy looks pwetty! But he told me I don’t need face paint anyway because he said I’m beautiful without it!" 

Louis was still laughing when he agreed with her father. Harry took their son and went to the bathroom to remove the excessive lipstick. “Listen, I love your sister, but I don’t think she’ll get a job as a make up artist soon,” he said to Francisco. Francisco gurgled. After putting down both children down to take a nap, after much protest from Lawana (“I’m a big girl, Daddy and Dadda! Big girls don’t take a nap! I want to keep playing with my face paint!”), they retreated to their bedroom. 

"I’m ready for a nap meself!" Louis said, stretching his arms above his head. Harry smacked his chest. 

"I don’t want to take a nap," Harry repeated Lawana’s words. He was sat in Louis’ lap, arms wrapped around his neck. "I have other things in mind." 

Louis raised an eyebrow. “Oh? Like what?” 

Harry attached his lips to the spot right below his ear, kissing lightly. “I want to suck you off.” Harry scraped his teeth over the sensitive area; Louis shivered slightly, grabbing Harry’s waist. Harry gave his hips small, teasing circles against Louis. Detaching himself from his neck, Harry kissed his lips then peppered kisses down his throat. Sucking a dark bruise on Louis’ throat, he maneuvered his way down between Louis’ legs. His mouth ghosted over the tent Louis had produced in his pants. 

"Ah," he whispered. Harry suckled the clothed head, causing Louis’ hips to stutter. Harry’s tangerine colored lips left a stain on the crotch. Removing his pants, his cock was hard and leaking. Giving the tip a quick swipe with his tongue, Louis sighed, petting Harry’s hair. Harry sucked the head before sucking Louis into his mouth like the pro he is. Alternating between hard sucks and teasing licks, Harry had Louis moaning and whining. "Fuck, _fuck_ Harry, you’re so good at this. Taking my cock so _well,_ kitten." Pulling off, Harry was a sight to see: lipstick ruined, leaving stains on his husband’s throbbing cock, eyes glassy and blown. 

"Thank you," Harry’s voice was near shot. Dunking back down, Harry’s tongue licked the underside of Louis’ cock. Soon, Louis was pulling at Harry’s hair, near causing him a headache. His hips mustered up the little energy he had left, fucking Harry’s face. His balls were drawn up tight. He was close, so _so_ close.

"Harry, Harry, - pull off, nghhh - fuck," he groaned. Harry suctioned his lips tighter on Louis’ cock with no intention of pulling off soon. "Kitten, shit, don’t stop." One, two more thrusts and Louis was shooting down Harry’s throat. Harry pulled off with a filthy pop, spit and remaining droplets of cum following him. Louis pulled Harry up towards him, shoving his hand down his pants and stroking him until he reached his own orgasm. They both flopped back on the bed, on a post orgasm high. Louis mumbled sleepily about "loving my idiot husband even if you do have some fucking orange lips." 

* 

A couple hours later, Louis was woken by Gemma and Lawana watching a children’s TV show. He shuffled his way into the living room, hair array. “Oh, you’re up. Good, you guys need to take me to my doctor’s appointment.” 

"Why?" he yawned. "You just went last week." 

"Since it’s getting close to my due date, I need to go every week." 

"Well that’s stupid." 

"We have to make sure our," Harry said, coming up behind Louis, his lips free of the lipstick, "I mean your baby is healthy." Louis nodded. 

"Can me and Sisco come see the baby?!" Lawana asked excitedly. All three of them agreed that they could and Lawana cheered. "SISCO! We get to see the baby Auntie Gems eated!" 

All three adults erupted in laughter.

*  
The family Tomlinson and Styles were seated in the doctor's office. "Dada, did _all_ these mummies eat their babies?! Gosh, they must've been hungry because they look like Auntie Gems!" Lawana observed. Harry gasped in horror. He knew kids were honest, but he didn't expect his own kid to be _that_ honest. Louis' eyes widened comically; he was going to kick his husband's ass for making their child ask this. All Gemma did was chuckle. 

"Yes, baby Lala, they did eat their babies like me," she played along. "Some ate _two_ babies! Some even ate _three!"_ Lawana listened to her aunt as she told her about the myth about if she swallowed watermelon seeds, watermelon would grow inside her. The little girl sat on Harry's lap, squirming, the thought of watermelon growing in her stomach grossing her out. 

"I will make sure I will never, ever, ever eat watermelon seeds!" she declared. Soon, the door opened, revealing a short and stocky nurse. Her bright pink hair was pulled back into a loose ponytail. 

"Gemma Styles?" she called out. Gemma raised her hand. She struggled to get up, her protruding belly getting in the way. She finally managed to get upright and waddled her way to the examining room. 

"I can't wait to get this fucking thing out of me," she whispered to Louis. He shushed her, looking towards his daughter. Lawana was chattering away about her school friends to Harry who was carrying Francisco in his car seat. "Oh, stop. She's not paying attention. I mean it, about giving birth! I feel like a goddamn whale! How people do it multiple times is beyond me."


	11. Chapter 11

 

Lawana had just finished helping Harry draw a ‘welcome to the world’ card for her still unborn baby brother. Sat at the kitchen dining room table, they were shaking glitter onto the card and colouring and adding the finishing touches. Lawana had drawn a giant round face that was meant to represent the new baby in the centre of the card. He had a toothless smile and no hair. On one side of him was a picture of Harry, a long array of wavy hair and tangerine lips (“Daddy, the colour looks so 'pwetty on you, I will always draw you with orange lips now” she’d reasoned). Next to Harry was Louis and below them was Lawana with a shape that mildly represented Hendrix.

“Is this for the baby?” Louis asked, sneaking up behind Harry and resting his head in the crook of his neckto peek closer at the card they were making. Harry was colouring in a large rainbow on the front of the card. Louis turned his head slightly, smiling mischievously at Harry who nodded at whatever telepathic message this was. Louis leaned in and kissed his cheek, before giving Harry the thumbs up. Harry echoed the gesture, feeling all giddy inside.

“Yup,” Lawana answered.

“That’s nice baby, but I think you’ve missed Sisco…” Louis commented.

“Sisco not ‘portant.”

“What do you mean he’s not important? He’s your baby brother, of course he’s important. He’s part of this family. He loves you and you love him,” Louis reminded her.

“New ‘bwother ‘portant. Sisco’s boring.”

Franciso was oblivious to the entire conversation, sat with Niall in the lounge room while Gemma lay sprawled out on the sofa, squirming every so often and trying to get comfortable. Harry had left Franciso with Niall – the toddler had been absorbed in the Teletubbies, giggling delightfully whenever the sun with the baby face laughed.

“He’s not boring!” Harry said hotly, and once he had finished colouring the rainbow in, he scooped Lawana up into his arms. “You’re just a little madam, you know that? You’re going to regret calling Sisco boring one day, one day when he’s, like, I dunno, being set on a cruise by Rolling Stone because he gets to interview the most famous act in the world at the time or something and he’s laughing it up, visiting this band on their own private island or something-”

“Love, what kind of band gets their own private island?” Louis interrupted Harry mid-ramble. “I mean, if Modest were keeping islands from us, someone’s gonna hear from me about it…”

“You shush. Now, Lala, let’s go see what Sisco and Nialler are up to, yeah?” Harry asked, carrying Lawana into the lounge and plonking himself between where Niall and Franciso was sat. Niall was fast asleep and snoring and Franciso was scribbling wildly on paper with coloured pencils. “Aww, look, Lala. He’s drawing! What are you drawing, darling?” Harry asked Sisco. The toddler stopped scribbling and looked up at Harry with his head tilted to the side, warm brown eyes framed in thick long eyelashes brightening as they took Harry in.

“Juice Daddy please?” Sisco asked.

Harry beamed – the constant reading to Francisco was paying off. Mostly he babbled, but often strung random words together.

“You want juice? Lawana, would you please go a fetch Sisco some a juice? Pour it carefully into his tumbler,” Harry instructed as Louis wandered into the lounge with Hendrix at his feet. Louis sat himself on the floor, back against the sofa Gemma was sat. Hendrix, large as he was, attempted to sit himself in Louis’ lap and started licking Louis’ face, giving him lots of kisses. Louis laughed from the enthusiastic affection, while Lawana grumbled about not being Sisco’s ‘slave’ but after one stern look from Harry, she retreated into the kitchen to follow instructions.

“H-Hendrix, haha, enough. Enough kisses, yes, I love you, but enough-” Louis was saying, just when Niall jolted awake.

“Aww look,” Niall said, rising to his feet and stretching, “Hendrix kisses Lou like Harry does. Like he just can’t get enough...and basically drooling all over you…”

“Heeeey!” Harry cried, aiming to throw a beaded cushion at Niall but it missed and landed hard on Gemma’s chest.

“OUCH! Be careful, Harry!” she grumbled, looking mighty uncomfortable as she twisted and turned on the sofa, forearm crossing her chest.

“Sorrrry, but it was only a soft cushion, don’t be all grouchy…”

“It was not a soft cushion, it’s covered in fucking BEADS and shards of mirrors or something, what the fuck kind of cushion is this? And it hit my NIPPLES which are SENSITIVE right now, God. I just want this thing out of me. I am such a whale,” Gemma huffed, looking too emotional to argue with. Harry shut up at once, even though he desperately wanted to tell her to restrain from swearing in front of the children.

“It won’t be too much longer, love,” Louis said sweetly, standing up and without thinking he squeezed himself onto the sofa behind Gemma, who seemed confused by his actions. “Relax, just gonna give you a massage. This helps,” he explained, and she softened at once as he began massaging at her shoulders. Harry hid a smile. He couldn’t help but find it overwhelmingly endearing – Louis was always displaying his caring nature, and because his mum had so much experience with him and his siblings, plus the fact she was a mid-wife, Louis seemed to have an innate ability to deal with a pregnant woman.

“I just want him to hurry up,” she complained. The baby was nearly two weeks overdue. Everything in the scans was normal and he had developed normally, but he didn’t seem to want to leave the comfort of Gemma’s womb just yet.

“Here,” Lawana huffed, handing Sisco his juice. The toddler took the drink from his elder without really acknowledging her, tipping the tumbler to his lips and gurgling back the orange juice. “Get it yourself next time. Not your Cinderelly,” she warned him, crawling her way onto Harry’s lap.

“My boobs hurt so bad, you have no idea... they feel like rocks… it’s so painful, and they keep leaking milk,” Gemma went on.

“You are using that breast pump aren’t you?” Louis asked her, his thumbs massaging circles between her shoulder blades. “Remember, you gotta do it for a solid fifteen minutes each time…”

“Yes, not that it helps much… my body seems to think I need an infinite supply of breast milk and he’s not even here yet.”

“Mum said all that’s normal. Did you want me to phone her? Harry, what do you think? Get mum to stay with us for a while? She’d be happy to help out, and after all, she is an expert. I’m sure Fizzy can cope with the twins and Ernie for a few days,” Louis said.

“Please. Yes,” Gemma said and Harry nodded along. Louis scrambled off the sofa and reached for his phone lying on the coffee table, quickly dialling his mother’s number. “While you’ve got her on the line, ask her if she can magic this baby out of my womb now…” Gemma said dryly.

“Mum! You’d still be happy to give me and Harry a hand here with Gem? Yeah? You sure? What about work? Really? Are you sure? Thanks sweetheart, you’re the best. I’ll pick you up, okay. Is Dan home? Okay, cool… see you soon…” Louis said, hanging up.

 

*****

 

Harry fastidiously cleaned the house for Jay’s arrival while Niall took Lawana and Sisco to the park, pushing Sisco in his stroller. Busy vacuuming, Harry even cleaned the windows and quickly prepared one of the spare room’s with the comfiest bed linen for Jay and then started preparing for dinner by which time Niall and the kids had returned.

“Want me to chuck ‘em in the bath for yer Haz?” Niall asked, holding Sisco in one arm and Lawana’s hand with the other. They both looked a little grubby, Harry noticed. There was mud all over Lawana’s hands and between her fingernails. “I don’t mind, you look a bit tied up.”

“That’d be great, thanks, Niall.”

“No worries. They were in the sand-pit and then they dragged me over to the river. Hendrix went for a swim and then Lawana was making ‘mud-pies’. Bet they’re hungry, too, after all that. Mmhmm, something does smell jolly nice…” Niall commented hintingly.

“Daddy’s making Irish stew. He knows it’s your favourite and my favourite,” Lawana explained.

“Bless,” Niall said, taking her hand again and leading them away. “Bath-time first and then dinner, c’mon,” he went on, leading them to the staircase towards the bathroom.

Harry was humming to himself and stirring the pot of simmering Irish stew when he heard his husband’s distinct voice emanating from the porch. Butterflies started churning in Harry’s stomach – it was ridiculous. Just the sound of Louis’ voice, the knowledge that he was home again, made Harry go all fluttery inside. It made no sense. They’d been together all this time and to this day, Harry still had a crush on Louis Tomlinson.

“Harry, love, step away from that stove,” Jay said the moment entered, rushing to Harry and wrapping him into a hug. She then shooed him away and took over, stirring the stew.

“You sit down. You do _everything_ around here,” she said, shooting Louis a pointed look.

“I’m well used to it, Jay. Been looking after this one and doing his washing since I was sixteen,” Harry said, smirking at Louis who opened his mouth and closed it again, looking indignant.

“He’s always been lazy. When he was a boy, he’d lay around and expect me and his sisters to pick up after him. Right little Lord Fauntleroy he was at times.”

“Mother,” Louis said, signing. “This is bending the truth, somewhat. I wasn’t always lazy. And Harold, I did my own washing up sometimes. I remember once I even washed YOUR gold th-”

“SO, how are Doris and Ernest?” Harry said loudly over top of Louis, soft pink orbs tinging Harry’s cheeks.

 

*****

 

Jay dropped everything in order to make the final stages of Gemma’s pregnancy more comfortable and bearable. She helped Harry’s appreciative sister with the breast pump, and had brought with her pregnancy pillows which helped support the weight of Gemma’s belly when she was lying down. Jay had instructed Gemma to not get up unless she absolutely had to and made sure that her feet were always elevated to reduce swelling in the feet and ankles. She worked around the clock to ensure that Gemma was properly hydrated and getting plenty of rest.

It was after eight in the evening and Gemma had retired to bed. Jay had gotten her comfortable and then had volunteered to put Lawana and Sisco to bed, reading them bedtime stories and tucking them in. Harry and Louis were waiting downstairs curled together on the sofa while the evening news report aired. Monty was sat on Harry’s chest, purring between them contently.

“Hi boys,” Jay said, coming down the staircase and into the lounge. “I’m gonna help myself to some wine, you want some too?”

“Yeah, yes please,” Harry said. Louis murmoued in agreement and Jay returned moments later with three glasses and a bottle of white sparkly wine. She lifted the cork and poured the drinks.

“Poor Gemma, she’s really been in a lot of pain these last few weeks,” Jay commented, sitting down beside them. “She looks about ready to pop at any moment. I hope he’s here within the next few days, or they might just have to induce labour.”

“He’s just comfortable is all. And clingy,” Harry said, rubbing the tip of his nose against Louis’ and smiling. “I don’t think it’ll be too much longer, though. Could happen at any minute…”

“So what are you naming him? I thought you two and Lawana had come up with some name list?”

“We came up with a massive name list,” Louis agreed, meeting Harry’s eyes and raising his eyebrows with a cheeky kind of smile, giving Harry the go-ahead to share.

“Lala suggested names like ‘Aladdin’ and ‘Tarzan’ as options at the start,” Harry giggled, sipping his wine. “But in the end we all agreed on Sean. Lala liked it when we told her it was an Irish name. You know, Niall is the apple of her eye these days, so…”

“Sean Edward Tomlinson,” Louis said, smiling and slapping a hand to Harry’s thigh. “He’s getting Harry’s middle name. We thought it had a nice ring to it.”

“I hate to imagine what a boy named ‘Tarzan Tomlinson’ would be like,” Jay joked.

“Mother, that’s quite enough…” Louis said, raising a hand to her. “In any case, ballerina boy over here suggested the other one on the way to have either ‘Louis’ or ‘Louise’ as a middle name, depending on the sex.”

“That’d be nice. Haven’t you found out the gender of the second one, Harry? How’s Sequoia doing anyway? I thought you two were gonna get her to come stay with you once you knew she was pregnant?”

“Well, that was plan, originally,” Harry explained, leaning across Louis’ knees to speak to Jay. “We told her once she was pregnant we’d get her over here with us, and she is happy to stay for a while, meet Lawana,  Sisco and Sean – and the lads, but ultimately she decided she wanted to do the birth in her home which is completely understandable, so we’re coming to her. And she wants to, like, do it naturally, and she wants to have a water birth. She just wants it to be as peaceful as possible.”

“It’s a lovely, selfless thing she’s doing. I can’t wait to meet her as well! I hope you two plan on making her honorary aunt.”

“Of course, yes,” Harry confirmed, reaching for Louis’ hand and squeezing. “We discussed this, didn’t we, babe? Between Gemma and Sequoia, these two children will have amazing aunts-”

“ _Saintly_ aunts, even,” Louis supplied.

“Yes, saintly, even,” Harry echoed, returning Louis’ mischievous smile. ”We said we’ll be taking so many holidays to North Carolina just so our child knows who their biological mother is, who helped bring them into the world. We want to stay in touch. And on the subject of baby’s biological gender… we thought we’d let this time be a surprise. Like, with Sean, it was a first time for us, to watch a baby be born and grow, so we really wanted to know. With the second one, we’re gonna make a list of boy and girl names, see what we like…”

 

*****

 

The three of them had retired to bed just after eleven. With the whole house entirely asleep – Niall as godfather spent a lot of time there and slept in a spare room downstairs, Gemma and Jay were in the spare rooms down the passageway and the kids were asleep in their respective rooms. During the days, the house was always so alive and busy and loud, Harry and Louis never hardly got a moment to themselves. So despite their exhaustion, they often tried to use this free time in the middle of the night to their advantage. Sometimes one of them would fall asleep on the other, however, and end up apologising profusely in the morning.

It was one of those occasions. Harry was caught in a perfect ambivalence between horny and bone tired. His eyes were drooping and heavy as he lay on his side, shirtless and clad only in briefs. Louis, the big spoon despite how much of a giant Harry was, curled up behind him, his arm snaked around Harry’s waist. If he let his eyes slide fully shut now, he could just forget the world and fall straight asleep… but something in the pit of his stomach kept twitching as Louis squirmed behind him, trying to get comfortable. He thought of all the things he could do to Louis right now – flip him over and eat him out, make him beg, listen to him whine. Harry licked his lips, feeling a wave of heat rush through his gut and along his navel, setting his heartbeat on fire. Harry twisted around onto his other side, chest squashed against Louis who smiled softly at him and closed his eyes, looking as equally worn out.

“Babe…” Harry said, gently nudging his shoulder. Louis, eyes still closed, mumbled in response.

“Baaabe…did you wanna fool around a bit? Maybe I could even fuck you, if you were up to it,” Harry whispered in Louis’ ear, feeling the smaller man shiver against him, watching endearingly as his long eyelashes fluttered open, smoky steel blue eyes meeting his in the dimly lit bedroom suite.

“Darling, you’re insatiable,” Louis smirked, eyes looking so puffy and tired that Harry felt a twinge of guilt surge through him. “You know I want you, but I’m just… I’m just so t-tired, love,” Louis said through a long yawn.

“Yeah, I know. I’m sorry. Me too. Let’s just… yeah, let’s just sleep,” Harry agreed, snuggling against Louis, his front still pressed to Louis’ front, feeling his twitching dick not let up – in fact, it seemed to grow harder despite the gentle let-down and Harry wasn’t sure if he hoped Louis could feel it or hoped Louis couldn’t feel it.

“Don’t be sorry, baby. Sleep now, we’ll have some early morning fun before the menaces wake up, hmm?”

Harry mumbled in agreement, kissing Louis’ cheek goodnight, he shuffled around and turned back on his other side, keeping the throbbing behind his briefs away from Louis for the time being and feeling that this notion of morning sex was a longshot. They wouldn’t wake up early enough, as perpetually tired as they were – Lawana racing into their bedroom to jump on them was basically their alarm clock. It had been weeks, hell – nearly a month since they’d done anything. Granted, they had been crazy busy with planning for the new baby’s arrival, setting the nursery up, sorting plans out with Sequoia in North Carolina, and the general chaos of running the household and Lawana off to school and even participating in things like parent-teacher interviews. It was all very time-consuming. And Harry was secretly a little worried that he might start getting blue balls.

There was nothing for it. He could feel Louis’ chest rise and fall behind him, feeling every gentle exhale of Louis’ breath against his nape. Harry no longer really felt all that tired anymore, a yearning to consume the man sleeping and slumped against him overwhelmed Harry’s senses, beating the exhaustion out of him. Harry’s body was set on adrenalin now, heart thumping heavily against his ribcage. He tried to close his eyes and will himself to sleep, but whenever he shut his eyes, all he could see was visions of Louis’ thick and heavy cock fucking his face, slipping between his lips, hearing himself moan obscenely around Louis’ dick…

Groaning softly, Harry detached himself carefully from Louis, prying their limbs apart, he wriggled away closer to the edge of the bed and opened the bottom drawer of his bedside table, fingers brushing the fluffy handcuffs. An image flashed through his mind of Louis tied up against the headboard by the handcuffs, back faced to Harry, shoulders tensing, back arching as Harry slipped inside him. The pulse in Harry’s groin was quickening. Harry reached for the tube of flavoured raspberry lube, wishing he could slather Louis up with it and eat it out of him. Imagining fucking Louis deeply, his hips snapping against Louis until he came deeply inside him and then seeing himself toss Louis over, lifting his hips up, exposing the puffy used and abused hole and sliding his tongue in. Louis always loved it so much. He’d howl and moan until his voice was hoarse whenever Harry would slide a wicked tongue in, lapping at his own cum mixed with lube, eating it out of Louis who’d cry and rut against the mattress, pushing the bedframe against the wall with the pace of his thrusts, cock rubbing against the fabric of the sheets as Harry fucked him with his tongue and moments later Louis would cum all over himself.

Reaching next for the vibrator in his drawer, Harry squired the lube onto it and slowly slid it into his hole while rubbing his hard throbbing dick through his briefs, the moan catching in his throat. Harry closed his eyes, biting down on his lip hard as he slowly slid his briefs down past his hips, pulling his pulsating dick out. It was so hard and heavy in his hand. Harry swallowed thickly, feeling his forehead and hairline become damp with sweat as he envisioned ruining Louis, reminiscing in his mind the feel of sliding in and out of him, moving as one – from Louis on his hands and knees to Louis facing him, intimate, slow thrusts, hearts pressed together, beating in synchronicity.  Moaning softly, Harry drizzled lube onto his cock and then licked his palm, gripping his cock and jacking himself quickly, the sheet rustling against his quickly moving wrist, hips twisting and back arching, his free hand sliding the vibrator deeper, turning it up and leaving it there to buzz inside him as his hand quickened against his cock. He was breathing sharply now, chest rising and falling, and the springs in the mattress were groaning with Harry’s slight movements.  The heat rose and spiked in his gut and Harry bit into his pillow to muffle the raspy long moan that left his mouth as he released into his fist, cumming hard. His hole gaped and fluttered against the still buzzing vibrator. Harry froze, limbs momentarily stiff from the strong orgasm. He slipped the vibrator out and tossed it on the floor, wiping the slick lube and cum from his hand onto the material of his briefs. Harry felt a lot more satisfied and calmer now as he reached for his phone and set the alarm for five-thirty in the morning. He was going to make sure Louis kept his word. Leaving the phone on the top of the bed side-table, Harry slid back to Louis, once again the little spoon. Louis muttered something in his sleep, hand curling back around Harry’s middle and unconsciously pulling him closer. Harry fell into the deep lull of sleep a heartbeat later.

Sometime later Harry’s sleeping unconscious mind was rudely awakened by a frantic tapping sound. Harry cracked an eye open in the dark. Was that a clap of thunder? Probably. Harry turned on his side, curling into Louis, eyes falling shut again, trying to remember where he had been in his dreams. There had been a pleasant ocean – white sand and turquoise waters and the warm sun on Harry’s back. Harry tried to go back there, when the loud tapping noise started again.

“H-Harry? Harry… Harry, wake up, help…” came Gemma’s voice and a moment later she was at their bed, having turned the light on. Harry squinted into the harsh light, sitting upright now, realisation slowly dawning on him. She was waddling over to his bed, clutching her protruding womb, a look of anxiety and dread all over her face.

“The water broke, he’s coming, he’s… oh fuck, it fucking hurts. Harry, it hurts so bad… help me…” Gemma cried, groaning when a wave of cramps seemed to cripple her. Harry grabbed his phone and turned the alarm off, not even caring or remembering that he was a little (or a lot) wrecked, hair askew, clad in nothing but cum covered briefs. He probably smelt like it, too. The odds were she didn’t notice, not double over in pain as she was. Harry jiggled his hips into a pair of joggers and slid a wrinkled white tee-shirt on and quickly jolted Louis awake.

“Babe, wake up. Louis, wake up,” Harry said, shaking Louis until his eyes peeled open. “Gemma’s here, she’s in labour. Baby’s coming. We gotta go.”

The look of groggy disorientation was fading from Louis’ face. He jumped out of bed and threw some jeans and a Doncaster Rovers shirt that was lying on the floor on. Slipping his feet into a pair of Vans as Harry slid his boots on, Louis reached for the carry-bag with Gemma’s essential items while Harry grabbed her carry-bag full of maternity clothes, toiletries, baby onesies and diapers.

“Baby, go wake Jay up, yeah? Then wake Niall up – get him to get Lala and Sisco ready and then he can meet us there with the kids later, okay, because we have to go now. Right now. I’ll take Gemma to the car, you get Jay, meet you outside in five? And don’t forget to lock the house up after you,” Harry instructed, carry-bag slung around one shoulder, his free arm looped around Gemma, supporting her as they slowly walked at her pace down the stairs carefully while Louis rushed away to wake Jay up. Gemma gripped the stairwell for dear life, taking one step at a time. Every now and again she froze, unable to move, unable to do anything but absorb the pain clutching at her womb, the muscles in her abdomen clenching and cramping.

“Few more steps, Gem. You can do it. Then we’ll get you to the hospital and they’ll take good care of you, I promise,” Harry said, rubbing her back and leading her out the front door, helping her into the passenger seat. He quickly threw her carry-bag into the backseat and rang the hospital – their personal midwife, Rosalie Watson, was on call.

“Harry?” she answered on the second ring.

“Gemma’s in labour. We’re coming to the hospital, we’ll be there in, like, ten,” Harry told her, checking his watch. It was four-thirty in the morning and it was still dark out. Gemma was writhing in her seat and groaning, reminding Harry of how it felt and looked when you were sick as a dog from a bad hangover, except ten times worse.

“I’ll be there, everything we need is ready – I’m less than ten minutes away from the hospital so I’ll meet you at the entrance gate. I’ll just ring the ward and alert the staff on duty today. See you in a bit Harry, and don’t worry, everything will be fine,” Rosalie assured him. Harry thanked her and ended the call, waiting impatiently for Louis and Jay, tapping his foot against the pavement and checking his watch again. He cast a sympathetic eye to Gemma in the front seat who was wriggling about and clutching her belly, internalizing and absorbing her pain. It made him feel anxious. A minute later Louis and Jay left the house, both looking dishevelled. Jay was carrying bags and supplies as Louis locked the door and together they hurried into the car.

“Give me the keys, I’ll drive,” Jay told Harry, knowing that he was really in no state to be driving, as nervous and anxious as he was. Harry wordlessly handed her the keys and got into the backseat with Louis.

Gemma was letting out a string of cusses as Jay reversed out of the long driveway and turned into the traffic. The one benefit about it being so early was that the roads were practically deserted. Louis, having not worried about wearing a seat-belt, scooted over to Gemma and started massaging her shoulders.

“You’ll be okay, you’re in safe hands. Mum’s here, we’re here. Harry’s ringing your mum now, she’ll be there as soon as possible…” he told her.

Gemma didn’t seem to absorb these words.

“You…don’t…know…” she began, hissing as another piercing cramp seemed to roll through her. “You don’t know what this fucking feels like. How does anyone do this more than once. This is going to hell and back and it hasn’t even started. His fucking big melon of a head hasn’t even moved down towards my vagina yet and already this is HORRIBLE. H-How on Earth did you do this seven times,” Gemma panted in question to Jay, beads of sweat dotting her face.

“It’s common for the first to be the worst. It is often easier after the second pregnancy. It’s never ‘easy’, exactly, but trust me, once you’re holding that baby, all the love you feel, it makes all the pain worth it,” Jay said softly, reaching over for Gemma’s hand and squeezing it before returning both hands to the steering wheel. Gemma just glowered in response.

Within minutes they were pulling into the local hospital carpark. Jay quickly paid for parking and they scrambled out of the car, grabbing Gemma’s bags and supplies. Louis and Harry helped escort Gemma towards the entrance where Rosalie (short with long red hair pinned up into a bun and freckles) was waiting with a wheelchair. Grabbing under her arms, Harry helped sit Gemma into the wheelchair and Louis moved to grab the handles and push her along. Rushing through the corridors, they hurled her into a ward where hospital staff were already on standby. Gemma had opted for drugs, and an anaesthesiologist was already on standby.

“You’ll be fine, Gems,” Louis told her, at her side and stroking her hair as Harry rummaged through his bag looking for his large camera while the staff closed the curtains around Gemma’s bed and assisted in stripping her of her nightgown and helping her into a hospital gown. Once Gemma was settled onto the bed and the curtains were open again, Harry started snapping pictures, trying to get every moment. Gemma glared at him.

“Get that fucking camera away from me, Harry. I’m warning you. I don’t want pictures of me looking like this all over your damn Instagram. I swear to God.”

“But Gemmaaaa, this is beautiful… I want to capture everything… It’s a miracle, you know. And we can get some beautiful shots.”

“Louis, if my dimwit brother pokes that camera lens anywhere near my vagina, you won’t have a husband anymore because I’ll kill him.”

“I’m not gonna do that, you donut,” Harry grinned. Both Gemma and Louis were giving him unimpressed looks. “I’m just gonna photograph him when he’s out. We can get some good shots of you holding him, like. And then me and Lou holding him. And his wonderful grandmothers holding him! That kinda thing. That’s all. Can’t I put pictures like that on Instagram? I promise you’ll be glowing after he’s out. Nobody expects you to, like, look your best if I put like one picture on Insta-”

“Shut the fuck up or I’ll break your camera,” she warned, as another crippling cramp rumbled through her abdomen.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hiiiii sorry this is late! Both the co author and I were in Australia for the On the Road Again Tour in Sydney!! The boys were amazing and we had a blast! I do not speak Thai and if I have done anything wrong with writing the language, I apologize. Anywayyy, I hope you enjoy this chapter! x

Gemma was dressed his a hospital gown, hooked up to a machine that read her contractions and heart rate in bed. The constant beeping of the heart monitor drove Louis to near insanity. Putting his head in his hands, Louis groaned. "Holy fuck, make it stop." Harry thumped his knee to shush him. Gemma lay there, a wet cloth over her forehead, breathing heavily, shot Louis a look. 

"Oh, I am sorry, Mr. Tomlinson! Would you rather have me die in labor than have a doctor look after me while I try to push your big headed son out of my vagina?" She snapped. "Go ahead, unhook me! But just know, if I go, I'll come back and haunt you." Harry got up to pat her sweaty face. 

"Gems, be nice. He's just stressing." 

"Fuck off, Harry. Until you're in labor, you have no say in what I can say." 

Fair enough. 

The needle on the machine that read her contractions began moving faster, indicating Gemma was about to have another strong contraction. Slamming her hand on the bar of the bed, she screeched her discomfort. Harry stroked her hair, whispering to his sister. "Harry, I can't do it. I can't. I quit. Fucking hell, I give up. Get him out of me!" Small whines were escaping. 

"Knock knock!" The door opened, revealing a man wearing a doctor's coat and stethoscope around his neck. A nurse followed him, with a rolling tray that had a rather large needle on it. Louis' eyes widened at the size. "Miss Styles, how are you feeling?" Gemma opened her mouth to snap at the doctor but Louis interrupted. 

"She's okay. A bit of pain s'all." 

"I want drugs!" Gemma practically roared. The doctor checked Gemma's progress and hummed. 

"You're only about four centimeters dilated. Baby Tomlinson has no means of moving soon, so we can give you an epidural." Gemma sighed in relief. The nurse snapped on some latex gloves and got the needle ready. She told Gemma to roll over on her side. In one swift movement, she jabbed Gemma with the epidural. Within minutes, she was relaxed, pain reduced greatly. Sometime later, Anne and Jay arrived with Francisco and Lawana. 

"Thank God you're here," Louis greeted. "She's unbearable! They gave her an epidural, so she's a little doped out." Lawana ran to Louis and scrambled into his lap. 

"Dada, why is Auntie Gem like a robot?" Lawana asked. Gemma giggled dopeily. 

Anne kissed Gemma's forehead, Jay squeezing her fingers. "She's not a robot, baby. She's hooked up to machines that help keep an eye on your new brother." Anne said. Gemma sighed, closing her eyes, breath evening out. "Oh, she's asleep! I forgot labor can wear you out." Jay turned to her son and son in law. 

"You two. Go home and get some rest. We'll be fine here with the kids. We'll call you if anything happens." 

Harry started to protest when Louis shot up. "Yeah, sure. That sounds great. We could use the sleep." His tone said 'sure mum we'll go' but the look in his eye said 'I'm going to fuck you until you can't take it anymore.' Harry smirked knowingly at his sly husband. 

"Yeah, you're right. We'll get going now. Bye, mum." He kissed Anne on the cheek. "Mumma," kissing Jay on her cheek. Louis put Lawana is Anne's arms kissing her face. 

"You be good for grandma and Nan Nan, okay?" She nodded.

"Laa Daaet! Laa Phaaw! Gaan khoon diaoo!" came Lawana's chirp. Harry and Louis stopped in their tracks, exchanging looks with one another before looking at their mothers and their smiling daughter. 

"Mum, what the fuc-heck was that?" Louis asked. Anne grinned. 

"That was your daughter speaking her mother tongue!" Harry looked confused. 

"But we haven't gotten her any books about Thailand yet. Or the language." 

"That's where I come in. I bought my little sunshine books about her country and the language. I thought that she should learn where she came from and never forget her roots. Besides, she should start learning young so she can retain more information. You should do the same with Francisco and the younger ones." Jay and Lawana were eyeing Harry and Louis. 

"Of course we will! You know, I've actually thought about bringing Spanish tapes for Sisco," Harry said. "Lou, we need to stop by the bookstore and get some books and tapes!" Louis started to drag Harry away from their family, Gemma blissfully asleep. 

Arriving at Harry's car, they slid in. The rumble of the engine echoed in the underground parking garage. Louis sat back, eyes closed as Harry slowly pulled out. Placing his hand on his thigh, he hummed to himself. His hand was inching closer and closer to Harry's clothed crotch. Harry paid no mind, which was dangerous, really. Soon, Louis was palming Harry lazily. His breath hitched which made Louis smirk. "Lou, you cannot get me hard while I'm driving," he whined. Palming him to full hardness, Louis unzipped his jeans. 

"Not wearing any pants, huh?" Harry flushed and mumbled a _we were in a hurry okay?_ Unbuckling his seatbelt, Louis leaned over the consul to put his mouth on Harry's cock. Harry's grip tightened on the wheel, Louis giving him kitten licks then licking the underside of his cock. They were just coming from the underground parking garage into full daylight. At that moment, Harry was grateful his windows were tinted. 

"Lou," he dragged out his husband's name, "not in the fucking car! This is dangerous!" Louis took that exact moment to suck the head of his cock, making him groan. Then he went down down down on Harry. Harry choked out a moan, Louis' fingers working what he couldn't fit into his mouth. Years of giving Harry numerous (and amazing) blowjobs, Louis had his gag reflex under control; some times he gagged to get Harry riled up. Louis was feeling particularly evil today so he gagged once. The car swerved, Harry groaned. Louis did it once more then bobbed his head. Harry's hips popped up to meet Louis' face. Gagging for a third time, Louis know Harry was getting close. Once they were at a stop light, Harry tangled his fingers in Louis' hair to guide him. Obnoxious slurping sounds were coming for Louis' mouth. Only two more miles and they're home. Harry can do this. 

Wrong.

Louis' small fingers found Harry's balls and began to gently squeeze and caress them. Harry was losing all control now, the car swerving again, nearly missing a paper boy. "Louis, Louis, don't stop, fuck _me_ don't stop," Harry moaned. His thrusts were getting sloppy, balls tightening. One final gag and squeeze and Harry was coming down Louis' throat. He didn't stop until they pulled into their driveway. Louis pulled off, a glint in his eye. Harry sat back, breathing heavy. "Shit." Louis went to tousle his hair in an attempt to make it look like he just wasn't sucking his husband's dick seconds ago. 

"Love you!" Louis kissed him deeply. 

"Mm, love you too, you menace." 

* 

Four hours had passed since they left the hospital and Baby Tomlinson hadn't moved. "I'm going back to sleep," Harry said as he hung up the phone. Slipping into dreamland, Harry felt something on his butt. He scooted away from it but it followed him. "Christ, get your dick away from me Tomlinson!" 

Louis pouted. "But I'm horny." 

"Take care of it yourself, I'm tired, Boo." 

Huffing, Louis rolled over, knowing Harry would take care of him soon. 

And right he was. Thirty minutes later, Louis woke to puffing and hushed whimpers Cracking an eye open, he saw Harry bent over the bathroom sink with two fingers up his hole, fingering himself open. Louis didn't want to ruin Harry's concentration so he fell back asleep. The second time he woke up, he felt something wet on himself. "Fuck," he groaned, sleep still evident in his voice. His husband was between his legs sucking him slow and teasingly. Harry smiled, only to sink down on Louis and suck him faster. Before Louis had a chance to enjoy it, Harry pulled off, hovering over Louis' lap then sinking down on his cock like it was his throne. They both whined. Harry fucked himself with minimal effort before Louis got annoyed and fucked up into him twice; Harry took that as a sign to fuck him before Louis went mad. Their skin slapping against each other and their ragged breathes was the soundtrack to their dance. Louis brushed against Harry's prostate, making Harry cry out. He fell forward, chest against chest. Louis took the opritunity to grab Harry's butt and smack it, making both cheeks an angry red. 

"Harry, don't do that," Louis warned as Harry nibbled the spot on his jawline. Harry nibbled again and finished it with a playful bite. The purple mark that was going to arrive soon made Harry proud. Louis thrust up hard, hitting his prostate again. Delighting in the sounds Harry made, Louis did it again and again until Harry was nearly sobbing. 

"Shit, Louis, 'm so close, Jesus _fuck_ me hard, baby, make me yours." 

Louis growled, fucking Harry as hard as his body would allow him too. Hissing, Harry came after final jab at his prostate, cum covering Louis' stomach. Louis came soon after, filling Harry. Exhausted,y they rolled over, Harry being the little spoon. "We haven't fucked like that in ages," Louis slurred. Harry made a small noise. Louis got up to clean himself and Harry off. Harry protested, saying they should shower. After they did, they crawled back into bed, cuddling and watched television. At 10:35 that night, the phone rang. 

"'Lo?" Harry answered. 

"Harry? Louis? It's time. Baby's almost here," Jay said. Harry batted at Louis. They both got up and put fresh clothes on and headed towards the hospital. 

Baby Tomlinson was about to make its grand entrance into the world.

**Author's Note:**

> Hi all,
> 
> Be sure to add a comment along the way and let us know what you think! <3
> 
> [Larry is love. We all know it.]
> 
> xoxoxox


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